Life's Problems
by Ann-sgcfan
Summary: I thought of this after reading the spoliers for "Threads". How would Sam handle all the problems life throws at her? SJ eventually. This is my First Fic...Please R&R. COMPLETE!
1. Default Chapter

Life's Problems

_Author's Note: I got this idea after reading the spoilers for "Threads". I know my story is different then the spoiler, but this is how I imagined the story to go. I wrote this before "Affinity" aired, so some differences there too. Obviously it's a J/S story eventually. This is also my first fanfic, so if you have any pointers on how to make the story better, please let me know. If you don't like the story, you can tell me that too._

_Author's Note 2: Huge thanks to Brandie for Beta Reading my story, and giving me good suggestions!!_

_**Warnings of Spoilers** at some point in the entire story: Season 8, Death Kneel, Chimera, mention of Hero's Part 2, if there are anymore I'll let you know._

The three members of SGC were in Sam's lab talking as she was straightening up around her lab. They were getting ready to leave for the night, when they heard the Klaxon sound announcing an incoming worm hole.

SG-1 made their way to the gate room to see what was going on. As they entered the gateroom a man was standing at the end of the ramp talking to Major Davis.

They recognized him to be a member of the Tok'ra by his clothing. Sam wondered who he was and why they didn't send her father. It had been so long since she had seen him.

Major Davis nodded an affirmative to the Tok'ra pointing at SG-1, as they met them half way to the door. "I'm Medhat with the Tok'ra. I have come with news regarding you father." He said looking at Sam.

Sam's eyes went wide with shock. "Is he Ok? Where is he?"

"That is why I have come Major Carter."

"Actually it's Lt. Colonel Carter, now." Major Davis said correcting Medhat.

"Forgive me Colonel Carter. I had not heard about your promotion."

"It's fine." Sam could care less how he greeted her. "What about my father?"

"Jacob Carter was sent on a secret mission several months ago. When he failed to check-in we became concerned."

"Do you know where he was sent? We can send an SGC team out looking for him." Daniel asked

"I'm afraid I do not. He flew a Tel'tak to his location. We knew he would have to move around frequently, therefore, there was no concern when he did not check in as scheduled."

"How over due is he for check-in?" Sam asked anxiously.

"He was scheduled to check-in 40 days ago."

"What?!" They all asked in astonishment.

"And you're just now looking for him?" Sam asked almost yelling.

"We have been looking for him the past few weeks. Please understand it is not uncommon to go on missions that last for months to a year without making contact with the High Council."

"Well ... What have you found out?" Sam's face was flushed with anger.

"I'm afraid little is known at this time about his situation. He could be fine and unable to make contact for fear of being discovered."

"How may we assist the Tok'ra in locating Jacob Carter?" Teal'c asked

"We are still gathering Intel, but in two days, we should have acquired enough information to know if Jacob and Selmak are in any danger. We will return then for your assistance. I must return now to the Tok'ra home world."

"Wait a minute you can't just come by and drop a bomb shell like this and leave!" Daniel knew Sam needed more information.

"I'm afraid that I have told you everything that I know. I am sorry, but I must leave now." With that he asked that they establish a worm hole to the designation that he requested earlier.

The worm hole disengaged after he stepped through. SG-1 and Major Davis continued to stare at the vacant Stargate.

Sam closed her eyes hoping the last 20 minutes had been a bad dream.

Daniel put his hand on her shoulder to offer comfort. "We'll find him, Sam ... besides you heard him ... they go on missions where they can't contact anyone for long periods of time."

"I know." She said quietly making her way back to her lab. Teal'c and Daniel followed her.

Once inside her lab, Daniel shut the door for privacy. He wasn't sure how she would take the news. He knew she was strong and hated to show any emotions in front of the rest of the SGC. Although, SG-1 was more like a family so he was hoping that she would be more willing to open up.

"I'm OK guys. I'm just worried that he's out there hurt somewhere and we can't get to..." her voice broke. She blinked back tears.

"Your father is a very capable warrior Colonel Carter. I am sure he is safe."

"I know Teal'c. You're both right. I'm probably worrying for nothing, but I just can't help but feel something is very wrong." She spoke quietly brushing a tear from her eye.

"Why don't you go on home since you have already shut everything down for the night? Teal'c and I will stop and get take-out and meet you at your house. How does that sound?" Daniel didn't want her to be alone, but he knew the best place to get her to open up was somewhere off base.

"I appreciate it guys, but I think I'll just go on home and maybe get to bed early." She wasn't sleepy, but she needed some time alone to sort out her emotions. She loved having the guys around, but she knew they would want her to talk about it. To be honest she was scared to death of what her father might be going through, but she wasn't ready to talk about it.

"Are you sure that's what you want Sam?"

"Yeah it is." She said smiling at Daniel to show her appreciation.

"You may contact us at any time Colonel Carter. We will be glad to assist you." Teal'c said respecting her privacy, but allowing her to know they were there if and when she needed them.

"I know. I'll see you guys tomorrow." She left her lab to head home.

_Next Chapter ... Pete adds to Sam's problems_.


	2. Part 2

Life's Problems – Part 2

As Sam put her keys on the counter at home she noticed that her answering machine was blinking. Pete had called asking her to call him as soon as she got home; he had great news to share with her.

Sam sighed, at hearing his voice. She still wasn't sure why she had said yes when he proposed. She thought it was way too soon in their relationship, if there ever was a right time.

She loved Pete, but was she in love with Pete? She didn't know how to answer that question. Sure he made her laugh and she enjoyed his company, but she couldn't see herself growing old with him, as hard as she tried. She didn't know if she believed in soul mates, or if everyone has one true love. She didn't think Pete was it.

Thoughts of General O'Neill flashed through her mind. She immediately shook them away, annoyed with herself, and picked up the phone.

"Pete Shanahan", he answered

"Pete. Hey it's me. I just got home." Sam said sadly.

"Hey, Babe. You sound like you had a rough day. Well, I have great news that will cheer you up." He said brightly.

She smiled, "Sure I could use some good news right now."

"Well, I just signed papers on 'our' new house! It's great you're going to love it! It's about mid way between where we both live now."

She gasped. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. He didn't even discuss it with her. Just because they were engaged, didn't mean he could control her life! The shock was wearing off and was being replaced with anger.

"I know Babe it's going to be a commute for both of us, but you don't want to quit your job, and I love my job too much to quit."

"I love my job too." She huffed. She still couldn't get him to understand that saving the world on a weekly basis wasn't just a saying, but a very true statement for the SGC. He didn't seem to grasp, that her job was just as dangerous, if not more so then his own despite his experience with Osiris.

"I know...I know that's why when I saw this house I knew it would be perfect for us. So I signed this afternoon."

"What!" She spat. "How could you sign on a house that I have never seen? Don't you think this is something that we should have discussed?" She was just about yelling.

"Hey calm down. I know you. You'll love it. At least take a look at it. If you don't like it, then I will sell it." He said cheerfully.

"Pete, this is something that we should have discussed before you bought it." She was trying to calm down. "A two hour commute is bit much when you get off around 21:00 or 22:00, especially when I have to be back at 07:00."

"You won't still be working those hours, once we're married will you?" He asked a little disheartened.

"Pete, you know how important my job is. You know I don't have normal work hours, just like you don't." she stated calmly trying to get him to see her point.

"I know you're right. That's why we are so good together we understand each other."

She didn't know how to respond. '_If they understood each other so well, then why did he buy the house without even discussing it with her?'_ She thought to herself. "Look Pete. It's been a long day. I need to get some rest before tomorrow, why don't we discuss this later."

"Sure, Babe whatever you need. Love you. Talk to you on Friday."

"Ok. Bye." She hung up with a sigh. Talking to Pete was suppose to help her feel better, not add to her problems. She had forgotten to tell Pete that she may not be here this weekend. _'Oh well._ _I'll have to deal with this problem after I find my father.'_

_Next Chapter ... Sam goes to see Jack._


	3. Part 3

Life's Problems – Part 3

_Thanks to all of you for reviewing!!! I wrote this before "Affinity" aired so some differences in my story. I hope you like it._

_Thanks again to Brandie for Beta reading!!_

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Sam lay in bed wide awake. Her thoughts kept drifting from her concern for her father and her doubts regarding Pete. Pete was great at first. He was cute, charming, funny, and he knows about the SGC. Perfect relationship right? ... So why was she suddenly feeling like she was trapped. Now he was making decisions for her. She still couldn't believe he had bought a house. What was he thinking?! She had this nagging feeling that things weren't going to get any better after they were married. Was she rushing into this? Was Pete just her chance at a relationship or was she really in love with him?

She let out a loud sigh, and threw the covers back. She knew staying in bed hoping for sleep was pointless. She made her way to the kitchen through the dark house. There was enough moonlight showing through the windows that she didn't need any lights. She sat down at the table with a glass of milk.

She looked outside at the sky blanketed with stars. "Where are you dad?" She whispered. _'Are you Ok ...Are you hurt ...scared ...have you been captured' _every scenario made her stomach churn. She was a soldier. She had been captured and tortured numerous times and near death more times then she cared to remember. The one big difference between her father's situation now and her situation ... she had SG-1, and together they always managed to escape. The SGC NEVER left anyone behind, and they weren't about to start with him. She continued to gaze at the stars thinking about her father and SG-1 until the sun finally peeked above the mountains.

Later that morning she decided that she needed to tell General O'Neill of the recent events regarding her father. He had been on vacation to relieve some stress of his new job when the Tok'ra arrived with news about her father. Since the Tok'ra didn't have enough information regarding Jacob's situation, they decided not to intrude on Jack's vacation. Jack, however, said he was staying in town if they needed him. He would be back on base tomorrow when the Tok'ra arrived, so Sam decided maybe talking to the General would help calm some of her fears. He might after all come up with one of his great 'simplistic' ideas.

She arrived at Jack's house. He was a little surprised to see her when he opened the door as if he was expecting someone else.

"Carter! Hey what are you doing here?"

"Am I disturbing you, Sir?"

"No of course not come on in." He smiled "So what do I owe for this pleasant surprise?"

She gave him one of his favorite smiles. But he noticed the smile didn't reach her eyes.

"Carter, are you ok? You look a little down? You know if you're having any problems with your team, I can always order them to go out with SG-13. You know how many dessert planets they end up on. I can do that now you know." He said teasing her.

She walked into his living room and sat down on his sofa. "No Sir. It's not Daniel or Teal'c. Actually it's about my dad."

Jack walked over and sat down beside her. He was a little nervous now. "Is everything ok with dad?"

"Not really, Sir. The Tok'ra came through yesterday informing me that he has been missing for a month." She said sadly.

"A month! Why haven't they told us before now! You know I'm really getting sick and tired of all..." She touched his knee to calm him down. It wasn't that she didn't agree with him, she was just as angry, but right now she needed to talk to someone.

He was a little surprised by the touch and forgot what he was saying. They were always the perfect soldiers never letting emotions get in the way of their jobs. Granted they were forced to admit to unprofessional feelings for one another during the Zartec test a couple of years ago. They never acted upon them, because their jobs were too important. Every once in a while they would be there for one another, and they comforted each other in extreme circumstances, like when Janet died.

"I know Sir. I feel the same way, but they'll be back tomorrow. If they haven't found him they will allow us to help search for him." She said it so quietly that he barely heard her.

He could see the dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep. "Hey" he whispered turning her to face him. "We'll find him. You know Selmak will not let anything happen to him. I'm sure he's fine." Jack silently prayed he was right.

"I know you're right. It's just...I can't lose him." She said almost in tears.

"Hey come here." He pulled her into a hug.

It felt so good to be comforted by him. She pulled away to look at him to say thank you. She looked into his warm eyes and instead of saying the words; she lost herself in the rare emotions that were showing in his eyes. She felt her heart leap. "Jack" she whispered. "There is something else..."

All Jack could do was stare deep into her blue eyes. He didn't know what to say. These moments were so rare. Both of them letting the soldier façade break away a little to see the person full of emotion within.

"Pete and I ....I'm having second thou..."

"Hey Jack! Honey, I'm back." A woman said entering the house breaking the spell. She hadn't noticed the two sitting on the couch.

Sam blinked in confusion. _'Honey?' why is there a woman calling Jack honey_. It suddenly dawned on her. He had moved on with his life, she thought sadly.

Jack looked like a deer caught in headlights. An array of emotions washed over his face fear, dread, and sorrow until his soldier face was in place blocking all emotion. He stood up from the sofa to greet his other guest.

"Hey, we're in here." He looked down at Sam hoping she would be ok with this meeting.

Sam stood up and squared her shoulders. She didn't blame him, but she couldn't help the sting of jealousy.

"I'm sorry I didn't realize you had company." His guest said as she made her way into the living room. "Oh. Hi Colonel Carter! What brings you by?" She said oblivious to the scene she had walked into.

"Kerry?" Sam asked shocked, her eyes wide in disbelief. _'How much more shocking news can I take?' _Sam thought.

"Carter came by to tell me that her dad is missing." Jack said answering Kerry's question.

Seeing the shocked look on Sam's face Kerry smiled because she was sure the rest of the SGC would react this way when they found out. "I know this is probably a shock, finding out Jack and I are dating. To be honest I was a little surprised when he agreed to have dinner with me. What has it been ... two weeks now, honey?" She asked looking at Jack.

Sam's heart stopped. '_He was dating Kerry?! But ..._' She didn't really want to think about him and Kerry together.

"Uh ... Yeah ... I guess so." Jack said a little distracted by Carter's reaction. '_She hasn't said anything yet and that shocked look on her face is still there.'_ He wanted to tell her and the rest of SG-1, but it never seemed to be the right time.

"Uh ...Carter. I'm sure your dad is going to be OK." Trying to get back to the reason she came by. "Why don't we talk about this tomorrow? You said the Tok'ra will be back tomorrow right? So we'll come up with a plan and bring dad ... err... I mean your dad home ... OK?" He wasn't sure if he was trying to save himself or her from this awkward situation. He wasn't trying to dismiss her, although that's what he felt like he was doing.

Sam was already making her way to the door. She wasn't really listening to what the General was saying. "Sure Sir. I Guess I'll see you both at work." She left before either of them could respond.

"Is she going to be OK, I'm a little worried about her?" Kerry asked Jack.

"Yeah, she's tough. She's just really worried about her dad." Jack couldn't help but feel that he may have caused her more problems. This wasn't how he wanted to introduce the two. He wanted to tell Carter about Kerry before they met. He never wanted to hurt her. Carter seemed happy with... what's his name ... Paul, Peter, no...PETE, that's it. Daniel even told him they were engaged. Pete could provide her with the life she deserves. So he decided he should move on with his life as well. That's why when Kerry asked him to dinner he had accepted.

He replayed in his mind the scene of him and Carter on the sofa. What was Carter trying to tell him, before Kerry walked in? Was she going to tell him that she and Pete were engaged, or was she having doubts about Pete? Jack's heart soared at the last though. If she was having doubts, then maybe there was still a chance for him. _'D'oh ...She had just found out that he and Kerry was dating. Way to go Jack!'_ He said mentally kicking himself. He wasn't sure what he should do. He and Carter couldn't be together, IF that's even what she wanted, until one of them left the military and that wasn't about to happen any time soon. He was enjoying Kerry's company. She was intelligent, funny, pretty, and she worked at the SGC so that wasn't a problem. He couldn't wait around for a possible future with someone else, when Kerry could offer him a relationship right now... could he?

Sam made her way to the car. _'Oh...my ... word! He's dating KERRY!! Why hasn't he told me?' _Her heart ached. She blinked back tears as she pulled out into traffic, not sure where she was going.

Tears fell down her face now as she felt that 'what could have been' ... was now gone forever.

She was having second thoughts regarding Pete. She had a good idea that her relationship with Pete was the reason Jack had moved on. She didn't blame him, but it didn't prevent her heart from breaking when she found out.

If it were a total stranger that she would see on rare occasions, that would be one thing, but what made it even harder... he was dating someone she would have to see and deal with at work.

She didn't want to dread going to work, she loved her work. Despite the constant dangers off world, SGC was her safe haven. She loved working in her lab. She thrived on the constant challenges and the problems she had to solve on a weekly basis. Her job was never boring, and her team was like her family.

She was as close to them as she was to her biological family. Teal'c and Daniel were like brothers to her. She thought with a small smile. The General... well that relationship was a bit harder to categorize.

She had to admit there was a bond between her and Jack, but was it just friendship ... could it have developed into something more. If she was honest with herself she always hoped for more, but the Military would never allow it.

She had all the confidence in the world when it came to solving the problems with the Stargate or one of her experiments in her lab. Sure it may take a while to find the solution, but she knew with enough hard work she would find one. Unfortunately, when it came to matters of the heart Sam lacked confidence. That was one reason she and Pete had hit it off so well. He was so openly honest with his affection, she didn't have to guess what he was thinking or feeling.

With the General, he kept his heart and emotions well hidden behind military training. She could read him like a book in the field, during briefings, but when it came to expressing any feelings he closed off, just like she did.

She wasn't surprised to see the entrance to Cheyenne Mountain. She decided that she needed to workout and relieve some stress. By the time she signed in and made her way to the gym after she changed, there was no trace of tears. Her military face was back in place and no one would be able to tell the turmoil going on inside her.

The base was quiet for the middle of the afternoon, because most of the SGC teams were off world. So she had the gym to herself.

She decided to start with the treadmill; she set it for 5 miles. When she found her rhythm, her mind began to sort out the turmoil.

She didn't know what to do regarding Pete. She knew she couldn't wait forever for Jack, or if that was even a possibility. She wasn't getting any younger and neither of them was willing to give up the jobs they loved. What they did at the SGC was too important. They had never discussed their 'relationship' such as it was. She didn't even know if he still had feelings for her or not. With that thought her heart was heavy again, what if he didn't feel anything for her, anymore. What if she was just 'Carter' the soldier, the scientist that saved his butt, and the feelings he once had was nothing more than an infatuation that had worn off. If nothing else they were still friends with a strong bond.

Teal'c walked in the gym and greeted Sam. "Good afternoon Colonel Carter."

Sam was so deep in thought that she didn't know Teal'c had said anything to her.

"Colonel Carter?" Teal'c tried again walking further into the room. He noticed that there were unshed tears in her eyes.

He moved back towards the door closing it behind him. He stood guard not allowing anyone to enter the gym. He knew Colonel Carter was greatly troubled regarding her father's disappearance, but he had a feeling there was more causing her such distress. He would allow her this time to work through her problems. He knew she would open up when she was ready, but for now she needed to be alone to sort through her thoughts.

In the gym, Sam finished her five mile run. She slowed her pace to a walk to cool down. She glanced in the mirror and he eyes were glistening with unshed tears. She looked around a little embarrassed, hoping no one saw her. To her relief she was still alone in the gym. She decided she needed to shower and head off to her lab.

As she stepped through the doors of the gym she almost hit Teal'c with the door. "Teal'c, sorry I didn't see you standing there. What are you doing standing in front of the door?"

"I am unharmed Colonel Carter. How are you doing this afternoon?"

Sam realized that Teal'c must have walked into the gym and while she worked through her thoughts and prevented anyone else from entering the gym. She looked up at him and smiled. She squeezed his forearm lightly "Thank you Teal'c."

Teal'c knew Colonel Carter discovered his true purpose for standing outside the door. "You are most welcome Colonel Carter. Is there anything that I may assist you with?"

"It's kinda complicated."

"Matters of the heart usually are, are they not?"

Sam was a little surprised; did he know? Was she thinking out loud? A look of fear crossed her face.

"Colonel Carter. I am sure your father's disappearance must be very difficult for you right now." His earlier assumption that more was going on was just confirmed. However, whatever it was she was not prepared to speak of it.

"Yeah Teal's it is. I just wish the Tok'ra would tell us what's going on. The waiting is the hardest."

"Indeed."

"Well Teal'c I think I'm going to clean up and then head to my lab."

"Very well Colonel Carter."

"If you are in need of anything, you know where to find me."

"You know I will Teal'c. Thanks." She smiled at him before she headed to the elevators.

Sam was in her lab 30 minutes later, losing herself in her experiments. By early evening she was exhausted and decided to sleep on base. She locked up her lab and slowly made her way to her quarters. Once inside she fell on the bed thankfully too exhausted to think. She was asleep minutes after her head hit the pillow.

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_Next Chapter ... The Tok'ra return with news._

_Don't kill me. I promise J/S eventually, they just have to sort out some issues first. :)_


	4. Part 4

Life's Problems – Part 4

_Thanks for all the reviews!!!! I really appreciate it. I know this is a short chapter. I promise to update soon._

_Huge thanks to Brandie and TZMaverick for Beta reading this story!!_

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The next morning Teal'c and Daniel were sitting in commissary eating breakfast when Jack walked in and headed in their direction with his breakfast.

"Hey guys, mind if I join you?"

"Sure Jack."

"Of course O'Neill" they moved their trays over to make room for him.

"So where's Carter? Is she not joining you this morning?" Jack was hoping to talk to Carter before the Tok'ra arrived about her visit to his house.

"I'm a little worried about her, Jack?" Daniel said with concern.

Jack wasn't sure if Carter had told them about her visit or not. "Why is that Daniel?" he asked a little skeptical.

"Oh that's right you weren't here yesterday. Well the Tok'ra came by and ..." Daniel was about to explain when Jack interrupted him. "OH...Yeah...Uh Carter came by the house yesterday to tell me."

"What ... and knowing this you don't think we should worry about her?" Daniel was getting a little upset with Jack.

"No! ... I mean yes ... I mean I'm a little worried about her too Daniel. Her father is missing for crying out loud who wouldn't be sympathetic with her" Jack yelled, very annoyed with Daniel.

Unfortunately, Sam walks into the commissary as he finishes his last sentence. She decided to grab a pastry and some coffee. She was trying to decide if she should make a quick exit or at least stop to say hello.

She walked up to where they guys were sitting and greeted them without emotion. "Good Morning."

"Hey Sam aren't you going to sit down?" Daniel said has he moved his tray over to make room for her.

"No that's OK I left an experiment running in my lab. I'm gonna go check on that. I'll see you guys later." She left, leaving the three men looking very concerned.

"Well that was strange." Jack said oblivious to what she had overheard.

"I believe she was disheartened by your lack of sympathy toward her situation O'Neill"

"What! What are you talking about?" Jack was mad.

"I believe Colonel Carter walked in only hearing the last part of your conversation with Daniel Jackson"

"Uh Oh" Daniel said.

"What?" Jack was trying to think back at what he said. He was angry with Daniel for trying to confuse him. "Oh" he said as he remembered how sarcastic he was. '_Great now how was he going to explain that he was upset with Daniel and it had nothing to do with her dad being missing'_.

"Well Guys I guess I need to go and apologize and explain to her what she overheard."

"Indeed O'Neill." Teal'c said sternly

"That's probably a good idea Jack."

Jack got up from the table to leave, when the Klaxon sounded announcing throughout the SGC "Unscheduled off world activation" "Repeat Unscheduled off world activation". The three men ran to the control room to see if it was Jacob or the Tok'ra.

Sam was already sitting at the computer in the Control Room when the three men came running in.

"It's the Tok'ra ID, Sir"

"Open the Iris, Colonel." All eyes anxiously awaiting their visitor.

A Tok'ra representative walked through the gate ... alone. The wormhole disengaged.

Sam's lowered her head and closed her eyes. She needed a few seconds to regain her composure. She knew it probably wasn't her dad coming through the gate, but she had hoped. Daniel squeezed her shoulder and she quickly overcame her disappointment and got up to greet their visitor.

Jack and Teal'c were the first to enter the gateroom. Daniel and Sam followed shortly after them.

The Tok'ra walked down the ramp, "My name is Ian and I have been sent to you from the Tok'ra High Council regarding the one you call Jacob Carter."

"Have you heard from my father?"

"You must be Samantha Carter. We have heard many great things about you from your father."

"Is there news regarding where he is?" Sam was getting inpatient.

"Is there somewhere else that we may talk?" Ian asked as he looked around.

Jack decided that he should speak up since he's in charge of the base now.

"Hi. I'm General O'Neill, this is Daniel and this is Teal'c." He pointed to the other two men standing beside him

"It is a pleasure to meet all of you. I have heard good things about each of you."

"Why don't we move this to the Briefing room" Jack said as he led the group upstairs.

"Well tell me ..." Jack motioned for everyone to take a seat.

"Ian" Daniel said trying to help Jack knowing he didn't remember his name.

"Right. So tell me Ian, what do you know about Jacob and Selmak's disappearance, besides that he has been missing for a month?" Jack asked a little angry. He wanted the Tok'ra to know that he wasn't happy about being in the dark for the past month.

"We apologize for not coming sooner, but we received Intel this morning. We believe he is on one of these four planets." Ian said as he passed a device over to Jack indicating the coordinates to four planets.

"Do you want us to check at all four planets?" Jack asked wondering why they always did the Tok'ras job.

"That is unnecessary General O'Neill. You may choose two planets and we will look on the remaining two planets."

"Can you give us anymore information to work with?" Jack had to make a decision, and choosing a planet based primarily on their address wasn't a very good strategy. You might as well pick any-mini-miny-moe.

"I'm afraid not."

"Well how did they come up with these four planets?" Sam asked knowing there had to be a reason.

"The Intel that we have received from other Tok'ra operatives over the past month indicated that he would have been taken there."

"Taken?!" Jack and Sam said in unison.

"I'm sorry did they not inform you that he has been captured?" Ian said looking back and forth between Jack and Sam

"No. They didn't give any information except they haven't heard from him in over a month." Sam said cheeks red from anger.

"I'm afraid to inform you he has been captured by ....

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_Up Next – Find out who captured Jacob. _

_Sorry for the cliff hanger. Ch.5 is almost complete._


	5. Part 5

Life's Problems – Part 5

_A/N: As promised...here is the next chapter. Thanks to the Brandie and TZMaverick for Beta reading this!! For Spolier Alerts - see Part 1._

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"Taken?!" Jack and Sam said in unison.

"I'm sorry did they not inform you that he has been captured?" Ian said looking back and forth between Jack and Sam

"No. They didn't give any information except they haven't heard from him in over a month!" Sam said cheeks flushed with anger.

"I'm afraid to inform you he has been captured by Olokun, one of the Goa'uld System Lords."

"I thought he and his army were captured by Anubis, and therefore, dismantling Olokun's forces." Daniel said

"He was, but when Anubis was supposedly destroyed, we believe Baal took control of the super soldiers, and making him the most powerful system lord. Olokun is commanding the remaining Jaffa that weren't with Anubis when he was defeated." He said looking at Daniel.

"Olokun is looking for redemption among the other System Lords. We believe that he is working with Baal, or at the very least knows where Baal's new home world is located." Ian said to the entire group.

"Now that we have a weapon that can destroy the Super Solider, we can come closer to defeating the Goa'uld, if we can find Baal. You father, knowing the importance of this mission, volunteered."

"Why are you telling us all this?" Jack said suspiciously. "It's not like the Tok'ra have ever been so forth coming with information before, other than Jacob of course."

"Selmak was my mentor many years ago, when I was first blended. Selmak saved my life many times. I feel if the Tau'ri are going to join in the search for Selmak and Jacob, then you must be given the Intel that will aid you in your search." Ian said looking at Jack. Jack nodded his approval, a bit surprise by the amount of Intel.

"Are you sure that's it Olokun that has my father and not Baal?" Sam knew the extent of Baal's torture and size of his army now. If Olokun, being a smaller army, did have her father it would be easier to rescue him ... at least she hoped.

"Yes all reports show that he made contact with Olokun on his home world. We, however, have not been able to locate it. This morning is the first Intel which has narrowed our search to these four planets."

Jack and the rest of SG-1 were satisfied with Ian's explanation of the events surrounding Jacob's disappearance, and decided it was time for action.

The group sent a Malp through to each of the four planets to gather more information. Afterwards they all returned to the Briefing Room along with the team leaders of SG-3, 5, and 7.

"O.K. folks, we determined there are two desert planets, a beach planet, and my favorite a forest planet. There is no visual confirmation of Jaffa or super soldier near the gate on any of the planets; although, they could be hiding just waiting for us to show up."

"I suggest that SG-1 go to PXR-277." Daniel spoke up quickly. "That would be the beach planet." Clarifying for anyone that couldn't remember which planet it was.

"And why is that Daniel?"

"Olokun is impersonating the god of the sea. So it would make since that he would be on a planet that was full of water."

"I agree with Daniel, Sir. They always return to a planet that supports their persona." She said not looking up from the printouts.

"Alright then, SG-1 and SG-7 you will leave in 2-hours to go to the beach planet. SG-3 and SG-5 you will leave in 2 ½ hours for the forest planet. I guess that leaves the Tok'ra with the two desert plants, dismissed." Jack knew if Daniel was right then Jacob would be on one of those two planets. He wanted the SGC to be the ones to find him. This would at least allow Carter some time with Jacob before the Tok'ra returned with another important mission.

The leaders of SG-3, 5, & 7 all left to inform their teams about their missions. Ian left through the Stargate to inform the Tok'ra of the latest developments.

Teal'c was helping Daniel gather all the printouts they had scattered all over the conference room table. Sam was going over all the printouts for PXR-277 again; she couldn't afford to miss anything.

Jack was watching her intensely. He wanted to make sure she was okay... who was he kidding he wanted to make sure they where O.K. He wanted to smooth over any problems he may have caused her at his house, and this morning in the commissary.

Daniel noticed Jack watching Sam and decided that he and Teal'c should give them some privacy. Daniel nodded towards the door when Teal'c looked over at him. Teal'c bowed his head in understanding, and the two left quietly.

"We'll find him Carter."

Sam looked up and noticed that she and Jack were the only ones left in the room. "Yes Sir. We will!" She stood up to make her exit as well.

Jack stepped in front of her to prevent her exit. They were still a couple of steps away from each other.

She looked at him, her eyes questioning his move. She became a little nervous.

"Uh ... Carter listen ... have you got a few minutes I wanted to talk to you." He was fiddling with a pen in his hand, indicating his own apprehension.

Now Sam was definitely nervous. "Well, Sir. I do need to get ready for this mission."

"I know I just wanted to make sure you're ok with ... everything."

"Everything ... Sir?"

"Yeah you know ... this morning in the commissary." Jack decided to start with the easiest to explain. "Daniel was trying to confuse me. I was annoyed with him and it had nothing to do with you or your dad, honest Carter."

"It's O.K. Sir. I understand." He sounded genuine, and she knew how often he sticks his foot in his mouth, despite his best intentions. She decided this fell in that category.

She shook it off as another Jack moment and turned to leave, but he stopped her once again.

Jack decided to continue since that went so well. "Look Carter, I know yesterday at my house was a bit ... awkward. I promise I was going to tell you and the rest of SG-1 about Kerry and me."

Sam was quietly looking down at the floor. She wasn't sure she wanted to get into this right now.

Jack noticed her silence, _'What does that mean ... Is she upset because I'm dating Kerry ... or something else?'_ He really wasn't out to hurt anyone. "I'm sorry I..."

"It would have been easier." Sam said quickly. She decided to be honest about her feelings for once. She didn't blame him. She just wished she would have had some time to prepare for the meeting.

"Easier? What does that mean?" He said sarcastically. He was annoyed because he didn't know what he should do or say, and she was confusing him. It came out harsher then he meant to say it.

She looked up with anger in her eyes. "Yeah Jack ... It would have been easier to learn about your 'girlfriend' before I actually met her." She said raising her voice to match his.

"What do you care who I date...you're marrying Pete right?" He yelled. This was the first time either of them had spoken to the other about the dreaded subject.

She felt a stab of regret as she watched his eyes change from raging anger to heartfelt sadness. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come. She stepped towards him to touch his arm to tell something, but what ... that she was sorry... she never meant to hurt him ... she was having second thoughts about Pete. He took a step away from her. It all sounded hollow now.

She looked down at the floor. She had wanted to tell Jack about her engagement. She just couldn't face him. At the time, she was scared he would talk her out of it. Looking back now, she was more scared he wouldn't talk her out of it.

She looked back up to explain why she couldn't bring herself to tell him. "Jack ..."

"I understand." Jack said quietly. His military mask was put firmly back into place, "Look Carter you need to get ready for your mission, that's more important."

She knew she couldn't argue. She sighed and left the room.

Jack's head was spinning. He didn't know what just happened. He didn't mean to yell at her or sound so callous; especially after she was so willing to accept his apology about the commissary incident. He didn't mean to make things worse, and he never meant to bring up her engagement. That was still a sore spot for him. The fact that she never told him about the engagement, and that it happened so quickly had cut him deeper then she would ever realize. He wanted her to be happy, but he always hoped it would have been with him.

Sam made her way to the locker room with a heavy heart. The realization hit her full force. She was to blame for her own heartache, and worse for the pain she saw in Jack's eyes. If she hadn't given-up on him and any future they might have had, then neither of them would be going through this emotional tug-of-war. He was right she was engaged to Pete and he had every right to move on with his life. It's not like they ever had a relationship to begin with. She sat down on the bench in the locker room, and put her head in her hands. _'When did life get so complicated?'_ she thought with a sigh.

'_If I'm in love with Pete, then why does it hurt so much knowing Jack has moved on. And when did he become Jack instead of the General for-cryin-out-loud ...Argh!'_

Sam decided it was time she ended this self-discovery, especially when she started using his catch phrase. She stood up ran her hands through her hair and decided it was time to prepare for her mission.

Her personal life may be in chaos, but her professional life demanded her full attention right now without any emotion baggage getting in the way. She had a rescue mission to prepare for and six guys that were counting on her to lead them.

Sam was completely in soldier mode when she entered the gateroom. Daniel, Teal'c, and SG-7 were all waiting for her at the end of the ramp. The wormhole was engaged.

Jack was standing in the control room, still a little shocked at what happen in the briefing room earlier. "O.K. SG-1 and SG-7 you have a go."

It was already decided that Sam and SG-1 would take lead on this mission. "O.K. guys let's move out."

The 7 members walked through the Stargate to the unknown that awaited them on the other side.

_

* * *

_

_Up Next - Finding Jacob_


	6. Part 6

Life's Problems – Part 6

_A/N: Thanks to the two Beta Readers for taking time out to Beta read the story!_

* * *

The first thing the members of SG-1 and SG-7 noticed about this planet was how quiet it was. This was a beach. There should have been some noise from birds, wildlife, or at least from the waves crashing onto the shore. Instead they were met with an eerie quiet.

The hairs on the back of Daniel's neck stood on end. Teal'c, Carter, and several members of SG-7 immediately readied their weapons for a fight.

Sam decided they need to find cover until they could get a better assessment of the situation. She motioned for SG-7 to take cover behind a few rocks to the left of the Gate, and SG-1 took cover behind a small boulder to the right of the Gate.

Sam reached their position last. She put her hand on the boulder to steady herself. Then before any of SG-1 could react a transporter ring surrounded them, and they disappeared.

Colonel Walters the leader of SG-7 screamed for them to get out of there, even though he knew there was nothing they could do.

He radioed SG-1. "Colonel Carter, Come in, over!" no response. "Teal'c, Dr. Jackson can you read me, over?" Still no response. He slammed his fist against the tree, out of helplessness.

"Captain Bennett, you and Matthews stay here. Major Douglas you and I are going to locate SG-1. Bennett if we do transport out of here, then give us 30-minutes to get back. If you don't hear from us after that, then you two go back through the gate and inform General O'Neill what's going on."

"Yes Sir."

Colonel Walters and Major Douglas ran over to the boulder and waited ... Nothing happened. Colonel Walters touched the boulder in the same place as Colonel Carter, but still nothing happened. The two tried different stances and pressed every part of the boulder hoping to engage the ring transporter. After trying everything they could think of they decided something else must have triggered the ring transporter.

30 minutes later and still no contact with SG-1, Bennett and Matthews went back to the SGC to inform General O'Neill. Walter and Douglas remained on the planet still trying to activate the transporter rings.

Meanwhile Sam, Daniel, and Teal'c were trying to figure out where they were. The room was dark and wet. There were a couple of torches illuminating the jagged walls of a cave. There were only two exits. They couldn't contact SG-7 and there was no visible way to activate the transporter rings. They could hear someone approaching them from one of the passageways. There was no where to hide in the room, so the three members had no choice but to quickly leave through the other passageway.

They remained in the dark passageway hoping to get a good look at who was there. Just then, Six Jaffa walked in the room with staff weapons and torches, not noticing SG-1.

The flickering lights from the torches gave Sam enough light to give the hand motions to move out quickly. They couldn't use any lights until it was safe, so moving was going to be difficult. She grabbed Daniel's vest and motioned for him to hold onto Teal'cs vest. If they were going to move blindly through the passageway then they needed to be able to keep up with one another. Verbal communication was also out until they were sure the Jaffa weren't following them.

Teal'c was leading the group, when they again heard noise behind them. SG-1 quickened their pace hoping they could find cover before they were discovered.

Suddenly the passageway dropped off, unfortunately, Teal'c noticed it too late to stop his forward momentum. Daniel and Sam ran into him and the three slid down rapidly hitting the sides of the cave several times on the way down.

Teal'c was trying to stop their descent, but it was useless there was nothing to hold onto. Finally the floor became larger as it leveled off, so they weren't crashing into one anther anymore. They still hit the bottom hard, but luckily they were able to roll away from each other.

Sam and Teal'c quickly reached for their guns to assess the current situation. They were alone in a large, very well lit room. They could hear voices coming and they all scrambled for cover in different locations. They were beaten up pretty good from their 'entrance', but their injuries were limited to cuts and bruises.

Ten Jaffa walked into the room to investigate all the commotion they heard. Sam could see Daniel and Teal'c from her hiding place. She motioned for them to stay put.

The Jaffa continued their search until they discovered Daniel's position. One of the Jaffa grabbed him by the arm pulled him up. He was yelling something Daniel couldn't make out, when he thrown up against the cave wall.

He yelped as his shoulder popped out of place.

"Who are you and how did you get down here?" One of the Jaffa's demanded.

"Are you a member of the Tok'ra?"

"Uh ... no I'm not." Daniel said trying to sit up without moving his arm.

"How many have you brought with you!"

Daniel didn't respond. He finally managed to sit up and look around. He arm was throbbing and he was trying to fight through the pain to concentrate on what the Jaffa was saying.

The Jaffa stepped toward Daniel to strike him again for his silences.

Sam knew Teal'c wouldn't be discovered until last. If she could convince the Jaffa that it was just she and Daniel then they may still have a way out of this. She couldn't sit here and watch them attack Daniel.

Sam stood up from her hiding place. "It just the two of us." She walked over and knelt beside Daniel.

The Jaffa was caught by surprise by Sam's sudden appearance. "Who are you? Are you with the Tok'ra?" He asked again.

"No we're not!" Sam said

"You lie! If you two are not Tok'ra then, the ones you came with are. Where are they?"

"What are you talking about? He and I are the only two that are here."

"Then one of you must be Tok'ra or else you would not have been able to activate the transporter rings."

Sam finally realized what had happened and if she didn't do something quick then they were going to keep searching until they found Teal'c.

"I was blended with a symbiote several years ago. I still carry the protein marker in my system. I'm the one that activated the rings."

The Jaffa seemed satisfied with this for now. They stopped searching. "Put them with the others until our lord can decide what to do with them." Sam was helping Daniel stand when the Jaffa began pushing them out of the room.

Teal'c watched the entire scene. He knew he was their only hope of escaping, so he could not get caught. He followed the group quietly without being detected until they reached their destination.

Daniel and Sam were thrown into a room with the other prisoners. A force field of some kind was activated to keep them in.

"Daniel I need to pop your shoulder back in place."

"I know ... just hurry up." His face was drenched in sweat.

Sam recalled her training and quickly popped Daniel's shoulder back in place. Daniel yelled out in pain.

"Are you O.K.?" Sam was worried she may have made it worse.

"Yeah." He said quietly. His head and shoulder were still throbbing, although, not as intense.

She made a splint for his arm. When she was finished he gave a weak smile. "Thanks. Sam."

"No problem. Are you sure you're going to be O.K.?"

"Yeah. The pain is letting up some."

Sam helped him to lean against the wall. Daniel closed his eyes and tried to slow his breathing and regain his composure.

Sam began to study the room and its occupants. There were about 15 other people in the room and none of them seemed to be bothered by their presences. She continued to scan the room when she saw him.

She walked over slowly to a lone figure lying against the wall. She wasn't sure it was him. "Dad?" she choked on the word. The man didn't move.

She knelt down beside him to get a better look at his face. "Dad!" she quickly checked for a pulse with fear and dread.

She sighed when she found a faint pulse. "Dad!" she yelled trying to wake him up. His only response was a low moan. "Come on Dad wake up for me."

She began to check for his injuries. He was having difficulties breathing. She thought some of his ribs were broken. She checked for a fever and discovered he was cold. She began to worry about hypothermia. She had used her jacket as a make-shift sling for Daniel, and the Jaffa took their packs.

Daniel heard Sam yelling and made his way over to see if he could help.

Meanwhile at the SGC Captain Bennett and Matthews had explained the situation to General O'Neill. After hearing all the details and SG-7's belief that Colonel Carter had some how inadvertently activated the rings. He began to come up with possible scenarios as to how she could have done that. _'What if it was Carter herself who activated the rings? SG-7 said they touched everything Carter touched and stoodâ€ Teal'c doesn't have junior anymore â€ so the one thins that separates her from the rest of SGC was the protein marker in her system!'_ He hit his fist against the table, as he figured out why SG-1 were the only ones able to activate the rings.

He sent a message to the Tok'ra indicating the SGC required their assistance.

Jack explained to SG-6 and SG-11 his theory, and gave them orders to return to the planet with the rest of SG-7 and guard the area. If SG-1 was discovered it wouldn't be long before a group of Jaffa transported to the surface to scope out the area for more intruders.

Jack watched the Stargate disengage from the Control Room. This is what he hated most about his new job. He hated to sit there and wait and wonder what they were going through! He was a man of action. He wanted nothing more then to go to the planet and rescue his team ...actually they were his family. Granted Sam may never speak to him again, but he wanted another chance to try to sort out this mess. Hoping this time his mouth didn't trip him up.

On the Surface of the planet a group of Jaffa transported to the surface just as General O'Neill had predicted. The SG teams were all waiting for them. They immediately fired their zat guns knocking all 5 Jaffa unconscious, before they could react.

The SG teams remained in their positions until they were sure no more Jaffa were transporting up. They used their zat guns again when the Jaffas began to wake, killing all but one of them.

Ten of the twelve members of the SGC used the sole surviving Jaffa to transport down to the surface. When they entered the small dark cave the Jaffa yelled out and Major Douglas quickly used his zat gun again on the Jaffa.

The 10 members quickly assessed the situation and took cover in a passageway when they heard noises. A group of armed Jaffa entered the room. The members of SGC began to fire on their location.

Teal'c hearing the gun fire echoing through the cave knew the Tau'ri had come to rescue them. He quickly took advantage of the situation and knocked out the two Jaffa who were standing guard outside the prison.

Daniel looked up to see Teal'c turning off the force field. They heard the gun fire and knew help was on its way. Sam was still trying to wake her dad when Teal'c approached them.

"Colonel Carter. Can you father be moved?"

"We don't have a choice. We need to be careful though I think he has a couple of broken ribs. I need your jacket Teal'c, I need to try and warm him up."

Teal'c quickly dispensed of his jack and Sam put it around her father.

"Do you think you can carry him Teal'c?"

"Indeed." He picked Jacob up and put him over his shoulder. He knew this was not the ideal way to carry him, but he still needed to the ability to fire his staff weapon with the other hand.

Sam took one of the Staff weapons from the guards. Daniel was carrying Teal'cs zat gun. They quietly exited the prison with Sam leading the way. The other prisoners were following behind them as well.

SG-1 made their way towards the gun fire, eliminating any resistance along the way. Finally they approached the location of the Jaffa that was firing at the other SG teams. Teal'c set Jacob down against the wall out of harms way. Daniel kept watch behind them.

Sam and Teal'c took cover behind rocks and began a surprise attack on the Jaffa. The gun fight lasted only five minutes. In the end all the Jaffa's were laying on the floor and the members of the SGC were all accounted for.

They quickly used a hand device the Jaffa were carrying to activate the transport rings back to the surface. Teal'c and Sam carried Jacob through the Stargate as the others helped the prisoners make it through the gate as well.

When Jack saw SG-11's I.D. he called for medics to the gateroom. He waited with anticipation as the SG teams returned home.

Jack noticed Sam and Teal'c walking through the gate carrying someone. His heart dropped, he wasn't sure if it was Jacob, but the look on Carters face told him it was.

Daniel walked through the Stargate helping someone else through. Jack noticed the make-shift sling on his arm, and how beaten up all of SG-1 looked. Their clothes where dirty and there were cuts and bruises all over them.

Jacob was quickly taken away by medics. Carter was following them, not paying attention to anyone but her father.

Jack walked over to Teal'c and Daniel. "How are you guys doing?"

"We're fine Jack. It's Jacob I'm worried about."

"So that WAS Jacob."

"Indeed O'Neill. I am afraid Jacob is not doing well."

"His only response was a low moan, when Sam was trying to wake him up in the prison."

"The prison! Is that how you received that?" Jack said pointing to his shoulder.

"Yeah. A Jaffa threw me against a wall and knocked my shoulder out of place. Sam popped it back in, though." Jack grimaced at the thought. A couple of medics came over to check on Daniel's shoulder.

"Why don't you two get checked out and you can provide a detailed missions report in two hours along with everyone else."

"Okay Jack."

"Very well O'Neill." The two left for the infirmary, leaving Jack standing at the base of the ramp talking to the leaders of SG-11 and SG-3.

_

* * *

_

_Up Next – A long night in the Infirmary. _

_Hint: I like Jacob ... so I don't have the heart for a character death. _:)


	7. Part 7

Life's Problems – Part 7

_Thanks to the Beta Readers for helping me out! Thanks to all of you for the reviews!!_

* * *

Sam had been sitting in the small waiting room outside the Surgical suite, staring at the gray concrete walls, every since they took Jacob into surgery. She hadn't gone through her post-mission exam or changed clothes since they returned from PXR-277.

Daniel and Teal'c sat with her earlier before they had to report the details of their mission to Jack. Luckily, Jack had sent word that she could remain in the infirmary and they would contact her if they needed her.

This is where Daniel and Teal'c found her still sitting three hours later. They came in and sat down on either side of her.

"Have you heard any news about your Dad?" Daniel asked.

"No. Not yet." Sam's voice was shaky. She was beyond worried. Selmak should be healing her dad, but she wasn't. Did that mean her father's condition was too severe? Were Selmak's injuries so bad she couldn't heal her dad? Sam continued to think of possible reasons why her dad was still in surgery.

Daniel feeling uncomfortable with the silence spoke up. "We filed the mission report, Jack said when you got time you could write your version of the events. He said there was no rush to take your time." Sam just nodded; her mind was consumed with other thoughts.

Teal'c remained quiet knowing Sam didn't want to talk, but would take comfort in their presences.

Dr. Brightman entered the waiting room, still wearing her scrubs. Sam jumped up to meet her. "Doctor, how's my dad?"

"Well ... I have done everything that I can at the moment. The next 24 hours are critical."

"Does that mean he could die?" Sam's eyes were wide and glistened with unshed tears.

"I won't lie to you. It's a possibility, but I'm not giving up hope on him. He had a lacerated liver that resulted in hemorrhaging. We have finally stopped the bleeding, but we will need to monitor him closely the next 24 to 48 hours. He has three broken ribs and one of them punctured his lung. We have repaired the lung. His other injuries are minor and will heal over time."

"I'm also concerned about the symbiote. This is the first time that I've dealt with such a case. I have been treating the symbiote based on what I have read in Dr. Frasier's notes."

"Selmak." Came a voice interrupting them from the doorway. All four turned to see who had spoken. "That's the symbiotes name." Jack had been standing in the doorway listening to Jacob's condition.

"Of course ... I'm sorry General." Dr. Brightman turned to face Sam to continue. Sam was a little surprised to see Jack, but she was glad he was there.

"Selmak's heart rate has slowed considerably. I'm not sure how to heal her or what's wrong with her. Her heart rate hasn't dropped anymore, I'm not sure if this is normal with this much damage or not."

"That's must be why she hasn't healed Jacob." Daniel said thinking out loud.

"Indeed. It must heal itself before it can heal Jacob Carter." Teal'c said.

"What about the hand device. I can try the hand device again to see if I can get it to activate this time." Sam said desperately.

"Carter I have sent a message to the Tok'ra that we have found Jacob and need their assistance. I'm sure they will be here any minute." Jack didn't want Carter to try the hand device again and it not work. She would blame herself if Jacob didn't make it.

Sam opened her mouth to protest when Jack stopped her. "They'll be here soon Carter. IF and I stress IF he gets into any trouble before then we'll try the hand device. He's stable right now."

"Yes Sir." She said quietly. She wished she could have gotten the healing device to work earlier and her father wouldn't be going through all of this.

"We'll move your dad to the isolation room after post-op. It'll be quieter in there. You'll be able to stay with him in the room. He'll be in post-op for another hour." Dr. Brightman said.

Jack looked over at Sam covered in dirt, scrapes, and her hair was a mess due to SG-1's tumble down the cave. "Carter why don't you get your post-mission exam and a change of clothes, while you wait for dad to get out of post-op?"

She didn't protest there wasn't anything she could do. Her dad was stable right now and she welcomed the idea of a shower and clean clothes. She wanted to be there when they brought her dad out of post-op. She quickly left the group standing there and headed towards the locker room.

* * *

Sam was still sitting beside Jacob's bed where she had been for the last ten hours. His condition hadn't changed. Daniel and Teal'c had spent most of that time with her. She hadn't seen the General since her father had gotten out of surgery. Teal'c and Daniel brought her dinner and kept a supply of coffee coming. They tried to persuade her to sleep a couple of hours in her quarters while they sat with Jacob. She politely refused and said she would stay there for the night.

It was now 03:00 and she finally convinced Daniel and Teal'c, a couple of hours ago that she would be O.K., and they needed to go get some rest. Understanding that she probably wanted some time alone with her dad they left. The nurses came in every hour on the dot to check his vitals. A nurse assured Sam that her dad's condition had not gotten any worse before she left.

Sam was left alone with only the sounds of the beeping machines that were somehow soothing. She knew as long as those machines continued the same rhythm then her father wasn't getting any worse. If he could just hold on long enough for the Tok'ra to get here, then they would be able to heal him.

She began talking to her dad. She didn't know if he could hear her, but she felt closer to him. She started with Mark and the kids and the latest sports news she could recall. Then she started talking about the events in her life.

"Well Dad you know the last time you and I talked, I told you about Pete, the cop that Mark introduced me to. He proposed to me. It wasn't some grand romantic gesture, that's not really me anyways. He proposed to me in the park. It actually took me a couple of weeks to say yes." She gave a small laugh. "You know me I have to look at something from every angle, but now I'm not sure I thought it all the way through."

She didn't realize that someone was standing behind her in the doorway.

"You told me on the Prometheus, O.K. maybe it wasn't really you" she said with a smile. "But, you said it was time to let go of the things that were preventing me from finding happiness. I did that ... I gave up on the possibility ... I let him go. I thought our job and the fight against the Goa'uld were too important. Now he has moved on with someone here at the SGC. Someone he works with granted she's a civilian, but still! I don't really blame him, he's been through a lot and he deserves some happiness. I just wish it didn't hurt so much. I was already having second thoughts about marring Pete, and now all of this. It's not fair to Pete; he deserves to be with someone that loves him as much as he loves them. I realize now that I don't love him as much as I should." She finally voiced part of the fears she had kept bottled up for a while, and she had made a decision about her future.

The person in the doorway couldn't hear everything she was saying, but they had heard enough. Shock was preventing them from moving.

"Excuse me sir, I need to get into the room." A voice said behind Sam. She whipped her head around to see who had been listening to her.

Her breath caught in her throat. She closed her eyes as she recognized the shocked look on his face. Her heart sank. He stepped into the room to allow the nurse to do her job.

Sam got up from the chair and walked over to him, hoping he hadn't heard everything she had said. She wanted to talk to him about everything, but this wasn't how she wanted to tell him.

The pain in his eyes was evidence that he had heard enough.

The nurse left them alone after checking on Jacob.

"The General called me to let me know what had happened to your dad. He thought you might..." he chocked on the words. He cleared his throat to continue. "He thought you might need me. I got here as soon as I got off of work. Funny, huh?" He tried to laugh.

"Pete..." He put his hand up to stop her words.

"I knew you weren't as committed to this relationship as I was at first. I knew you had doubts. I had hoped we had worked through them. I thought we had, especially when you accepted my marriage proposal. That was the happiest day of my life." He said quietly

"I do love you, but ..." she decided she needed to be honest with him. "I'm not sure that we should get married."

"What are you saying?" He said in shock. "You just admitted that you DO love me, can't we have a lifetime to build on that?" He said hopefully.

'_That was part of the problem; I can't see spending a lifetime with you.'_ She thought to herself.

"Pete..." she said with a heavy sigh. "I do love you, but not as much as you deserve to be loved."

"No! We're great together. I just bought us a house!" He yelled.

Oh yeah she had forgotten about the house. "Pete I never even saw the house ... Look I'm sorry, but I can't marry you." She raised her voice.

Pete grabbed her arm. "Who is he?" He yelled.

"Pete you're hurting me. Let me go." She could easily get out his hold, but she would hurt him, and she had done that enough.

He ignored her. "It's your precious General isn't it?! I've seen the way the two of you look at each other."

She was getting aggravated. "Pete you don't know what you're talking about. Now let go of me."

Pete realizing he still had a death grip on her arm, he let her go. "I ... I'm sorry. I didn't mean too." Pete took a step away from her.

"Does he even know?" Pete said trying to calm down.

"Pete, nothing is going on with the General and me."

"You're forgetting that I just heard you talking to your dad." He never heard his name, but he knew how to interrogate a person, to get the information he wanted.

"Pete ..." she had spent 8 years hiding her feelings toward her CO from the rest of the SGC. She knew she hadn't given any indication as to the identity of the man she was talking about.

"I heard you! Now just admit it. You're in love with O'Neill!" He didn't know why he was pushing so hard, but he had to know. He couldn't stand being left in the dark.

Now he had gone too far and her temper boiled over to match his. "That's enough Pete! I never said such a thing and you know it. I'm not some criminal you brought in for interrogation." She yelled back at him. She knew if she didn't shut him up soon, then the base would be buzzing about her and the General. "I think it's time you left!"

"But ..." he knew he'd lost control of the situation and had pushed too hard. He decided to try a different approach. He couldn't lose her. "I'm sorry you're right. I shouldn't have yelled at you."

He looked down at his watch it was after 4:00 a.m. "It's really early, neither of us have had any sleep...why don't I come back later and we can talk about it? I know we both said some things we regret."

"No, Pete. I don't think so." She couldn't get over how quickly his mood kept changing. He would be sweet and understanding one minute and yelling at her the next.

"I can't marry you, Pete. I'm sorry if I hurt you, but I don't want to see you again." She knew she had to be very clear. It may be harsh, but she didn't want him to keep popping up everywhere trying to change her mind. She had made up her mind.

"Babe, come on ..." Pete started to protest. She held up her hand to stop him. "No Pete we're through, and it's time you left."

Pete turned and left Jacob's room in defeat. He had lost her for good. He allowed a few tears to fall, as he made his way to the elevators and out of the mountain.

* * *

Jack knew Pete was on base. The SF's had informed him Carter's guest had arrived. That was the last person Jack wanted to call, but after his little argument yesterday morning with Carter, he thought her fiancé would be able to help her through this in a way the rest of the team couldn't.

Jack was surprised when Captain Smith, the nurse taking care of Jacob, called to inform him that Carter and her guest were yelling at each other. She couldn't tell what they were arguing about, and she said it wasn't any of her business. She just wanted the hostile situation to end for Jacob's benefit. Jacob needed the rest and his subconscious mind may pick up on the argument and become agitated.

Jack decided to handle the situation himself instead of sending the SF's into a possible embarrassing situation for all parties. On his way to the infirmary he saw Pete walking towards the elevators. Jack wasn't sure, but it looked like he was crying. _'What in the world is going on?'_ He thought to himself.

Jack didn't say anything to him as he quickened his steps to Jacob's room. Nurse Smith was checking on Jacob and Sam was quietly sitting next to his bed. The same place she had been every time he came to check on Jacob's condition without Sam's knowledge.

When the nurse left, he cautiously entered. "Carter?"

"What?" she yelled as she turned to face the voice.

She was shocked to see the General. "Sir?"

"I'm sorry, Sir; Pete and I just had an argument. I didn't mean to take it out on you."

"It's O.K. Carter. Do you ... want to talk about it?" He didn't know if he was the best person for her to talk to, but she still looked upset.

"Everything just seems to be going so wrong." She mumbled.

"What's going wrong, Carter?"

She looked up into his warm caring brown eyes. _'I've pushed my feelings for him aside for so long, do I tell him now? Should I tell him that my engagement to Pete is off because of him?' _Maybe it was the lack of sleep or the events over last 48 hours, but she was seriously considering telling him everything. She was tired of the dance. She finally knew what she wanted, but was she strong enough to handle his reply ... good or bad?

Jack thought he had a good idea of what was going wrong. _'She had been through a lot in the last 48 hours. She had found out her father was captured; Kerry and I are dating, which we argued about before her mission. She found her father on the brink of death at the hands of a Goa'uld, and now she and Pete had had an argument. How much more can she take?' _He wondered as he looked into her exhausted eyes.

He wanted to comfort her. To let her know everything would be O.K., and he would always be there when life threw her its toughest challenges. However, he didn't know if he would always be there. They had taken different paths that lead to other people instead of each other. His heart sank. He was here now though, and he could comfort her today.

"So do you want to talk about why you and Pete were arguing?"

She stared at him trying to decide which road to take. "We were arguing about ... you." the last came out in a whisper. She looked away not wanting to see his reaction.

He wasn't sure he heard her correctly. "Uh ... What? You were arguing about me. Why?"

"I didn't love him enough, and he thought you were the reason for that." She said cautiously. She knew if his feelings had changed for her then she would have to transfer to another base after tonight.

He put his hand under her chin to raise her head so he could look her in the eyes. "Am I?" His heart soared at the possibility.

Her eyes filled with tears "Yes Jack, you are." She whispered.

His eyes filled with love. He ran his thumb along her bruised cheek to brush away the tears. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. He tilted his head down and kissed her softly at first and then the kiss deepened. They had waited so long for this moment. There was no misunderstanding, no dancing around the truth. They broke away to catch their breath, still holding on to one another and seeing the love and desire reflecting in the others eyes. They were scared if they let go then the moment would be broken.

They didn't know where they went from here, but at least they knew how the other felt. It was the first step. They reluctantly separated when they heard familiar voices in the hall.

Daniel and Teal'c walked in. "See Teal'c I told you she would be awake." Daniel was trying to balance a cup of coffee and a pastry for Sam with his good hand.

Teal'c observed Jack and Sam and smiled at what he saw in their eyes. "Indeed Daniel Jackson."

Jack looked at his watched and noticed it was 05:00. The nurse walked in as scheduled to check on Jacob.

Jack walked over to take the coffee from Daniel and handed it to Sam. She brushed her fingers over his as she took the cup he offered. They both smiled at the brief touch.

Daniel noticed the exchange and decided to ask them later if something had changed between them.

"Well Jack your up early."

"Yeah." He wasn't giving Daniel any details as to why he was alone with Sam at this time of morning.

"How is your father doing this morning Colonel Carter?"

"He's about the same Teal'c. He hasn't gotten any worse, but he hasn't woken up either. They still aren't sure what's wrong with Selmak."

The four friends kept vigil at Jacob's bedside until they heard the Klaxons sound several hours later. Jack, Daniel and Teal'c left to see if the Tok'ra had finally gotten their message.

As the three entered the control room Sergeant Harriman responded "It's the Tok'ra ID sir."

"Open the iris Sergeant."

"Yes, sir."

They made their way to the gateroom when Ian walked through the horizon.

"Ian, good to see you again. I'm glad you finally got our message." Jack smiled at him.

"My apologize General O'Neill. I came as quickly as I could. How are Jacob and Selmak?"

"I'm afraid Jacob isn't doing well. He is in the infirmary. Come on we'll show you where it is." Daniel said moving towards the door.

"Why isn't Selmak able to heal him?" Ian asked as he followed the group to the elevator.

"Selmak is also gravely ill. The Tau'ri doctors are not able to determine a course of treatment that will be helpful for Selmak." Teal'c said as they entered the elevators.

The group continued to give Ian all the details of Jacob and Selmak's condition. He was finally up to speed as they entered Jacob's room.

Sam turned to see the group enter and gave a relieved smile. She was talking to Dr. Brightman who came in to check on Jacob.

"Carter, you remember Ian. Dr. Brightman, this is Ian a member of the Tok'ra. He is here to assist you with Jacob and Selmak's treatment." Jack turned to Ian and introduced him to Dr. Brightman.

They discussed the extent of Jacob and Selmak's injuries which procedures, and medication they were on.

Jack rubbed Sam shoulders to give her reassurance as they discussed Jacob's condition. Sam gave him a warm smile in response, before Jack dropped his hand back to his side. Daniel and Teal'c smiled at their small display of affection, and knew something had transpired. Everyone else would see it as a friendly gesture between the two, especially under these circumstances.

Ian finally decided to start with the hand device and go from there. The soft glow spread over Jacob's face and chest as Ian activated the device. After 30 minutes Jacob's life signs began to improve. The strength it took for Ian to activate the hand device for such a long period of time caused him to collapse

They rushed Ian to an exam room to check is vital signs. Dr. Brightman was relived when she found two strong heartbeats. He passed out due to exhaustion. She asked a nurse to stay with him until he regained consciousness. She left to check on Jacob and was surprised to see him waking up.

* * *

_Up Next: Honestly I'm still writing the next chapter, and I've changed it several times. I can say Jack will have to deal with his relationship with Kerry, now that he and Sam are being honest with one another about their feelings._


	8. part 8

Life's Problems – Part 8

Jacob was resting in the Isolation Room in the Infirmary. He had regained consciousness three days ago. However, Selmak's heart rate was still indicating a comatose state. Luckily Jacob's body wasn't trying to reject his symbiote in fact it appeared that Selmak was using Jacob's strength to help heal itself. This was draining Jacob and allowed him to stay awake for only thirty minutes to an hour at a time. His broken ribs were almost healed as were his lungs and liver, thanks to the healing device.

Sam continued her vigil by her dad's bedside. She only left to get something to eat, or at nights to sleep in her quarters on base. She was able to catch up on all her paper work while she sat with her dad. Daniel and Teal'c continued to stop by to show their support.

Jack came in a couple of times a day, not as often as Daniel or Teal'c; he didn't want to give the gossip mill anything to talk about. They hadn't acted on their feelings since that morning in the infirmary. The regulations were still in place, a court martial was still very much a treat, and Jack had not broken up with Kerry. There were, however, brief moments of affection by words, a look, or a touch letting the other know their feelings hadn't changed.

Sam and Jack weren't the type of people to cheat on a spouse or significant other, anymore then they could throw the Military rule book, they followed their entire adult life, out the window to pursue a secret relationship. A kiss was one thing, but they weren't willing to cross the line anymore then they already have. They knew what they wanted ... each other, but they weren't sure how they were going to accomplish that. They had a glimpse of what their future could be like, and neither of them was willing to wait very long.

Sam was in the infirmary writing a report on the results from her latest experiment when her dad woke up.

Jacob was trying to focus on the person he knew was sitting in the makeshift desk next to his bed.

"Hey kiddo." Jacob managed to get out after clearing his throat.

Sam put her stuff away and sat on his bed so she could hear him better. "Hey Dad, How are you feeling?"

"Like I haven't slept in a week." He said roughly.

She smiled at him as she poured him a glass of water. "The doctor said your vitals signs are good and most of your injuries have healed."

The two sat quietly while Jacob wet his dry throat. "It's too quiet." He finally said.

She knew he wasn't talking about the infirmary. He missed Selmak.

"Ian is continuing to use the hand device after he recovers from the previous session. Selmak does improve marginally each time. That's why you are so tired. Your system is supporting both you and Selmak. It is rare for the symbiote to need healing instead of the host, but it is not unheard of."

"If we knew what was wrong with her, then Ian might be able to heal her quicker. I wish I knew what happened on the planet, but I'm afraid I don't remember much after the first two weeks of my mission."

"Don't rush it dad. You'll remember in time." Sam didn't really want him to remember the torture he must have gone through, but she knew it would help Selmak if he could remember.

"I just owe her for saving my life, and now I have a chance to repay the favor and I can't remember what happened to us."

Jacob continued to sift through his memories for anything that might help. Sam tried to help by asking questions, until Jacob became too tired and fell asleep.

Jack was deep in thought as he sat alone in the commissary. His mind kept drifting back to one person, Sam. He still couldn't get over that kiss. She actually felt the same way he did, and this time they weren't going to forget about it, or leave it in the room. He felt like a teenager again, he had a goofy smile on his face, and he couldn't help himself.

Sam walked into the commissary for a quick cup of coffee and bite to eat when she saw Jack. She laughed when she saw his goofy grin. She felt the same way. They had to figure something out soon. There were only a few people around, so she decided to chance it. She walked over to his table and sat down.

"Hey Stranger. You know if you don't wipe that grin off your face the entire base is going to know something is up." He looked at her still grinning. The last three days they had gotten comfortable around each other as Jack and Sam. They couldn't do much more than talk right now, but that was something new for them. They dropped the 'Sirs' and 'Carter' when it was just the two of them.

"Hi! I can't help myself. I feel like a teenager again, and that's no small feat."

She laughed "You're not that old."

"Oh ... so what's with all this gray hair?"

"I don't know I think it makes you look ... distinguished." She said with a mischievous grin. She wanted to say something else, but there were other occupants in the commissary.

He smirked and decided they were treading on dangerous ground so they better change the subject. "So how's 'Dad'?" She smiled at his obvious change in topic.

"He's doing fine, although he still can't stay awake very long. Selmak isn't much better. I'm a little worried about her. Dad just went back to sleep, so I thought I would grab something to eat and head back to the infirmary."

"I'm sure Ian will be able to heal her, it'll just take some time."

"I know. I'm worried something might happen to Selmak. I keep remembering what it felt like when Jolinar died. I was only blended for a couple of days. I can't imagine being blended for 5 or 6 years. This is really hard on him."

Jack remember the time all too well when Jolinar had taken control of Sam. He thought he had lost her; first when she was possessed by what they thought was a Goa'uld, then by an assassin, and finally when Jolinar died. The incident literally and figuratively changed her forever. They rejoiced when the ordeal was over, but Sam slipped into a depression. She mourned a death that none of them could understand. There wasn't anything they could do to comfort her. She wasn't responding to anyone; not even Cassie. He felt completely helpless watching her fight through the anguish alone. The pain from the memory showed in his eyes.

Sam saw the pain and touched his hand briefly and mouthed the words_ 'I'm sorry'_.

"You wouldn't let us help you." He still didn't understand why she pushed them away.

"I know I was so confused. Part of me thought Jolinar was the enemy we were fighting against, and the other part of me was completely convinced he was Tok'ra and we were fighting for the same side. It felt like part of me died, and I wasn't sure if I should be rejoicing or mourning. I felt guilty for both emotions. Add to that the dreams I had of Jolinar's life, and the lines between reality and fiction began to blur. I wasn't sure of anything anymore. I had to figure it out before I could let anyone else in to help me. I'm sorry I pushed you and everyone else away."

"I wished so many times that day had never happened to you." She looked at him surprised. He continued speaking preventing her from replying. "I know we benefited a lot after you were 'blended'. Earth made another ally, and your father was cured of his cancer, but you paid a huge price for that." He said his voice mixed with admiration and regret.

"I think we have all paid a huge price for this war. Teal'c left his family and his home world to fight against those he once served. Daniel lost his wife and an entire planet where he lived for a year. Janet made the ultimate sacrifice by giving her life."

"I guess I was the lucky one. I gained more then I lost when we started this job eight years ago."

Even though Sam wasn't there for the first mission to Abydos, she knew he had signed up because he thought it was a suicide mission. "Jack you lost so much before this war even started not to mention what you went through during it. You've been captured, stranded and tortured more than anyone should."

"Yes but in the middle of it all I found a reason to get up every morning. I have a great team that became my family, and there was a certain blue eyed scientist with a brilliant smile that brought me back to life. I mean it ... if it wasn't for you and the rest of SG-1 I probably wouldn't be here today."

She smiled touched by his words. She knew it wasn't easy thing for him to admit. She considered herself lucky to view the man behind the military mask, a man that had hopes and fears like everyone else. She fell more in love with him at that moment. "I don't know what to say Jack. You mean the world to me... you, Daniel, and Teal'c all of you do, and I can't imagine my life without you in it."

They sat there quietly staring at one another fighting the urge to reach out to the other, when they heard someone dropped their silverware on the commissary floor. They were shaken out of their dream state and looked around to see if anyone had seen them. They didn't think anyone was paying attention to them. They both smiled weakly at the other.

Sam spoke first. "I guess I need to get back to the infirmary."

"Yeah it might be safer there." He said with a smirk. She smiled in response, as he continued to speak. "I'll come by later to check on everyone."

She stood up to leave; knowing others would be able to hear them now. "Talk to you later sir."

"O.K. Carter."

Kerry saw Jack and Sam quietly talking when she entered the Commissary. They seemed to be having an intense conversation, and wondered if she should interrupt. She got her food and drink and was walking over to join them as Colonel Carter left.

Jack hadn't seen Kerry until she sat down in the same spot that Sam just left. He was a little shocked, and he hoped it didn't show.

Kerry noticed Jack's sudden change in demeanor as she sat down. His face became very serious. She missed his boyish charm that was displayed only minutes ago with Colonel Carter as she left.

"Well that wasn't the greeting I was hoping for." Kerry was trying to make light of the situation.

"Sorry ... I uh didn't see you come in. I didn't think you were on base today." Jack was trying to recover.

"So ... is this a pleasant surprise or not?" Kerry didn't want to play any games. She and Jack had only been dating three weeks, well technically only two because she hasn't seen him in the last five days.

"Uhhhh Yeah of course it's good to see you." He finally smiled at her. "I'm sorry I haven't returned your calls, things have been hectic this week."

"That's right, so how is Colonel Carter's dad doing? I saw her in here when I walked in."

'_Great! She saw us'. _Jack mentally kicked himself for not being more careful.

"Carter's dad is doing much better. The doctor's said Jacob is almost completely recovered. The symbiote is recovering slower then they like, so he has to stay in the infirmary until Selmak is better."

"Good. I'm glad to hear that."

"Listen I hate to leave you sitting here alone, but I have to get ready for a meeting."

"Jack I just got here and I haven't seen you the past five days. Can't you just spare ten minutes?"

Jack felt guilty. The situation was just too awkward. It wasn't fair to Kerry or Sam. He was starting to feel every bit his age. He didn't want to hurt either of them, and he knew if he didn't straighten things out soon he would end up hurting them both. "I really do have to go, but why don't you come over to my house tonight around 20:00?"

"O.K. I'll be there at 8:00 p.m. Do you want me to bring anything?" she was smiling at him, relieved he wasn't shutting her out. She was starting to get worried.

"No that's O.K. I'll take care of everything." He quickly escaped to the solitude of his office. He decided he would break up with her tonight. If he broke up with her gently, then maybe they could stay friends.

That night in the Infirmary Jacob was awake and sitting up in bed. He was listening to Sam, Daniel, and Teal'c talking and laughing about different events they had all been through together. Jacob couldn't help, but notice that Sam was happier then he had ever seen her before. He knew SG-1 was like another family to her, but he had a feeling something else was going on. He wondered if there was something else or someone else that was making her this happy. He remembered her telling him she was dating a guy by the name of Pete. He wondered if he was responsible for her happiness. Jacob wanted to talk to her about it, but his eyes were starting to get very heavy.

Sam was the first to notice her dad dozing off. She started to lower the bed so he would be more comfortable, when he woke up. "Hey why don't you get some sleep I think we're boring you with our stories." She said smiling.

"Nah I just wish Selmak would wake up so I could stay awake for more than hour at a time."

Daniel and Teal'c got up to say their goodbyes. "Rest well Jacob Carter. Colonel Carter is there anything that you require before we leave for the night?"

"Yeah Sam we can get you something for dinner if you want us to."

"No that's O.K. I think I might grab something later. Thanks."

"You're not planning on stay here are you?" Jacob said a little drowsy.

"No Dad I'll sleep in my quarter."

"No you won't. Look I'm feeling much better and Selmak will wake up soon. There is no reason ..." he yawned "for you to sleep on a cot when you can get a real night's sleep in your own bed."

"Dad, I'll be fine ...

"No you're going home tonight. Teal'c will you escort my little girl home and make sure she stays there until the sun comes up."

"Indeed Jacob Carter."

"Hey. I can get my self home when I want to go."

"I agree with your dad, Sam. You need a little time away from here. We'll pick up some take out and head over to Jack's. I saw him leave over an hour ago. We'll have a team night like we use to." Daniel knew she and Jack had gotten closer, so if he could bring Jack into the equation to get her out of the mountain, he would have a better chance. Besides he really wanted to know what was going on.

The thought of seeing Jack outside the SGC was making it very difficult for her to say no. "What is this ... a conspiracy?" She laughed.

"You're darn right. Now get out of here so I can get some sleep."

She leaned over and kissed her dad on the forehead. "Goodnight Dad, I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight kiddo. Thanks guys."

The three left and gave the nursing staff instruction to call Colonel Carter's cell phone if there was any change in her father's condition.

It was 21:00 by the time they got take-out and headed towards Jack's house.

"Hey guys, shouldn't we call him to let him know we are coming over." Sam remember the last time she arrived at his housed unannounced. She didn't want a repeat performance; although with recent events she didn't think there would be one.

"No I think it'll be more fun to surprise him, besides I think as soon as he sees you he'll be glad we came over." Daniel smiled as Sam blushed.

"I don't know what you're talking about Daniel."

"Oh come on Sam, Teal'c and I have seen the way you and Jack have been acting towards one another. Something has changed."

"Indeed it has."

"Nothing is going on right now. He's my CO, Daniel you know that.

"Nothing is going on _RIGHT NOW_?" Daniel asked amused at catching her slip.

Sam closed her eyes and cursed herself for the slip.

"What about Pete?"

Sam cringed as she remembered their argument in the infirmary. She had wanted to end things on a better note. "He came to see me in the infirmary the first night after we found dad. We had a big argument and I broke up with him."

"Sam I'm sorry, why didn't you say something to someone?"

"I believe she did Daniel Jackson." Teal'c remembered the morning after Jacob was found, O'Neill was with Colonel Carter when they arrived very early that morning. "I believe that is why the new situation has transpired between O'Neill and Colonel Carter."

"Oh that's right. Jack was already there that morning, and that was the first time we noticed your behavior."

"He came in to check on dad right after Pete left. We had a nice conversation." She said smiling. She wasn't about to give them any details.

They finally pulled up in front of Jack's house, but none of them really paid attention to the other car parked in front of Jack's house. The neighbors were always parking in front of Jacks house, since he was rarely home.

Meanwhile Jack had finally gotten up the courage to break up with Kerry as they finished eating. "Kerry you know I think you're a great person."

"Uh Oh. I've heard this speech before." Kerry began twisting the napkin she still held in her hands.

"You're an intelligent and attractive woman, and I just think you can do better than me."

"What are you trying to say Jack?"

"I think we should stop seeing each other."

"So you have been avoiding me the past week. I thought we had two great weeks together Jack. What changed?"

"We did have two great weeks."

"Jack if you think the age gap is a problem; I'm not worried about it."

"Well you should be. You're in your early thirty's and I'm ... well I'm not."

"Jack I don't care about our age. I enjoy spending time with you."

"I enjoyed the time we spent together too, but I just think we need to stop while we are ahead. You're ...."

They were interrupted by the door bell. Jack couldn't believe that person's timing. When the door bell rang again he knew they weren't going away. He excused himself and went to strangle who ever was at the door.

He opened the door to see his former teammates. "It's about time Jack what were you doing?" Daniel didn't give Jack time to reply he just walked past him towards the Kitchen.

"Good evening O'Neill." Teal'c followed Daniel in.

"Hi Jack." Sam smiled at him.

"Carter!" He panicked.

"Carter?" She was surprised by the use of her last name. "What's going on, Jack?" That's when she heard Daniel talking to someone in the kitchen. She closed her eyes. _'Please tell me she is not here?'_ She thought to herself.

"Oh ... Um ... Kerry? What are you doing here?" Daniel was shocked to see Kerry sitting at the table.

"Jack and I were having dinner." She got up from the table to see where Jack was. She thought he should explain what she was doing here to his teammates. She walked into the hall to see Jack and Sam still standing in the open doorway. She was surprised by the strange looks on their faces.

Sam was surprised when she saw Kerry walking into his hallway. She recovered quickly. "It looks like we're interrupting. Sorry to have bothered you, Sir." Sam turned and walked out the door.

Jack lowered his head as he heard her use the "S" word. _'No please, not again!'_ he thought to himself. He was standing in the doorway about to go after Sam when Kerry spoke. "Jack..."

Kerry had a bad feeling about what she saw. She was about to confront Jack about it, when Daniel and Teal'c came down the hallway mumbling their apologies. Kerry slowly retuned to the kitchen replaying the startling events in her mind. _'Is that really why Jack wants to break up with me, because of Colonel Carter?'_

Daniel couldn't believe what was going on. Surely Jack wasn't dating Kerry, especially the way he and Sam had been flirting. Daniel, always the diplomat, was about to ask Jack for a reasonable explanation when he saw the look on Jack's face. Daniel was sure then that he and Kerry were on a date. Part of Daniel felt a little sorry for Jack and the predicament he was in, but the other part wanted to yell at him for being so stupid for messing up what he and Sam had accomplished the last few days.

Jack lowered his voice to speak to Daniel and Teal'c as they were walking out the door. "It's not what it looks like. I'll come by later to explain."

"Do you think that is wise O'Neill?"

"I know how this looks T, but at least give me a chance to explain."

"Jack, I doubt Sam will want to see you. Why don't you call instead?"

Jack was surprised that they knew about him and Sam. He wondered if Sam told them, or if it was just that obvious. "Fine, whatever! Just give me a chance to explain."

Daniel and Teal'c nodded their heads in agreement and left to take Sam home.

Jack watched as their car drove down the street with a sigh. _'How do these things get so screwed up?!'_

Jack turned and walked back inside. He found Kerry pacing in his kitchen. She stopped when she noticed he had returned. "Care to explain what's going on?" she asked trying to stay calm.

"What are you talking about?"

"The look I saw on Colonel Carter's face. It's the same look she had the first time she came over and I was here. Of course then I thought it was just the shock of finding out we were dating. Care to explain why she was so shocked to find me here this time?" Kerry asked sarcastically.

Jack started to speak when Kerry cut him off. "Is that why you gave the 'your too good for me speech'. You're a grown man Jack you could have just told me you found someone else. You didn't have to lie to me!"

"I'm not dating anyone else, and you do deserve someone better then me." He was trying to calm her down.

"Cut the crap, Jack. Are you and Colonel Carter dating? I just want to know the truth, it's not like we have had some long meaningful relationship."

"No Carter and I aren't dating."

"Have you dated in the past?"

"No we haven't dated in the past. Why the fifth degree?"

"I just wanted know Jack. I have always heard the rumors, but never believed them until tonight."

"What rumors?"

She didn't know if he was playing dumb or if he really hadn't heard them. The look on his face would indicate the latter.

"You really don't know do you?" She said amazed. "The rumors about you and Colonel Carter, Major Carter, or Captain Carter, whatever her rank at the time ... are involved. Some rumors over the years even have you two secretly married."

"Years?" He was shocked to say the least. He and Sam had just admitted how they felt about the other, and now he finds out the entire base believes they've been involved for years!

Kerry couldn't help but smile at his astounded facial expressions. She wanted to hate him or yell at him, but she couldn't. She saw the way he was looking at Colonel Carter in the Commissary this afternoon, and again tonight at his front door. In the two weeks they spent together, he never once looked at her with the desire and longing she saw when he looked at Colonel Carter.

"Jack, you're a great guy behind that tough sarcastic exterior. We had fun the last two weeks. I knew the rumors could be true when I came into this relationship. I'm not going to lie, I am hurt and angry. I wish you would look at me the way you look at Colonel Carter, but you don't. I can't compete with whatever you two have or will have."

"I never meant to hurt you, and if it's any consolation Carter and I aren't dating."

"It's not."

"I'm sorry." He truly meant it.

"Me too, Jack. I guess I'll see you around the base."

"Of Course."

"Goodbye Jack." She picked up her purse and walked out his front door without looking back.

"Bye" Jack said now to an empty house.

Sam remained quite on the ride to her house. None of them had spoken since Daniel and Teal'c conveyed Jack's message that he would explain everything later.

She didn't want to jump to conclusions. She wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. '_There has to be a logical explanation as to why Kerry was at his house tonight. Surely he doesn't want to keep seeing her ... does he? No, no maybe that's why she was at his house so he could break up with her. Oh, Jack what are you doing?'_

She closed her eyes silently prayed that she and Jack weren't going to go back to the way things use to be. She knew she wouldn't be able to handle it, not after taking the first step and coming this far. Sure there was the time when they had their memory stamped and they thought they were Thera and Jonah. It was easier to pretend that it was Thera and Jonah that loved one another. This time it was Jack and Sam that admitted their feelings. She wouldn't be able to sit in the briefing room and not look at him and remember the desire he had in his eyes for her, or the soft tender kiss they shared once in the twilight hours when nothing mattered, but the two of them.

After they arrived at Sam's house. Daniel and Teal'c put the take-out in the microwave to reheat. It had been a week since Sam had been home so she excused herself on the pretense of checking out her house. Instead she was still trying to work out the nervousness she had waiting for Jack to call. That's when she heard Daniel's cell phone.

She rejoined them in the Kitchen and Daniel handed her the phone. "Hello"

"Hey Sam it's me, please let me explain."

"I'm listening." Sam went into her living room for privacy.

"I invited Kerry over here tonight to break up with her. I couldn't do it on the base, because there were too many people around. Today was the first time I had seen her in 4 or 5 days. She saw us this afternoon in the commissary."

"She saw us in the commissary. What did she say?"

"Not much. Although, she thinks there is something going on between you and me. Did you know the entire base thought you and I have been involved for YEARS?"

"I have heard rumors, especially right after I received a promotion."

"What! That's ridiculous. You've earned every single promotion you received."

"I know that, and so does everyone that matters to me... But Jack, this time the rumors are closer to the truth."

"I know." He said quietly. "You stand to lose more out of this if we do decide to explore what ever we have together."

"Jack I think the decision has already been made. Do you think you could go back to the way things were?"

"No. It would kill me."

"Yeah me too. So I guess we decide where we go from here."

"Why don't I come over, and we can talk about it."

"Do you think that would be wise, Jack?"

"Afraid you couldn't keep your hands off of me?" She could hear the smile in his voice.

"I think we both need to think about our options first and then discuss what we are willing to do. Although, we both have to agree that no one will make any rash decision until we both talk about it and agree with it."

He smiled at her logical approach, and couldn't really argue with it. "O.K. with me. When do you want to discuss this?"

"I don't know. I guess when we both come up with a solution."

"How long is that going to take?"

She laughed. "I don't know Jack, maybe a week or longer."

Jack didn't like the idea of more than a week. "A week sounds good."

Sam still smiling. "O.K. a week."

"Well ... goodnight then."

"Goodnight Jack." He still loved the way she said his name.

They both reluctantly hung up the phone and began to think about what they were going to do next.

15


	9. part 9

Life's Problems – Part 9

_Author Notes: **Bold print** - Indicates flash backs._

_Thanks to the Beta readers for their help!! Thanks to all of you for the reviews!!

* * *

_

Sam had gone in to check on her dad early the next morning. The nurses had informed her that Selmak's vital signs were improved to the point that she should wake up soon. As she entered her dad's room she heard him mumbling in his sleep. At first she couldn't make out what he was saying and then she realized he was reliving the torture he went through on PXR-277. She decided then she needed to wake him up. "Dad?" He didn't respond. She shook his shoulders and said louder "Dad. Come on wake up." He started to move around more and finally woke up.

"Hey." He said looking around a little disoriented. "SGC Infirmary?"

"Yeah." She was a little concerned he didn't know where he was. "Are you OK? Do you want me to get the doctor?"

"No. I'm OK. I just had a dream, it's nothing."

"What can you tell me about what you remember?" He looked at her as if he didn't know what she was talking about. "Don't even try to deny it Dad. I overheard you talking in your sleep?"

"I don't talk in my sleep." He protested with a smile hoping to change the subject. She gave him a look that stopped his protesting. "OK you win. You must have learned that look from your mother." He said smiling at her.

She couldn't help but smile. "Dad...what do you remember?"

"It mostly just dreams that I have been able to piece together. We had just been captured by an army of Jaffa and Olokun was 'questioning' us. He apparently wasn't getting the information he wanted. Selmak took control to heal us after each session and she was able to block out most of the pain. About a week or so later, I lost track of time, he got tired of our answers and decided on a different approach. He gave us a poison that would only affect Selmak, thinking I was weaker and would give information if I didn't have Selmak to protect me. He used the same methods of interrogation. He knew I carried Tok'ra and Tau'ri information ... but I surprised him ... I never folded." Jacob stopped talking and stared off into space remembering what he went through. He wasn't going to share all his nightmares with her.

Sam took the hint and didn't push any further. If he wanted to talk about it she would be here. They sat there in silence for a long time until Jacob spoke again. "I remember Selmak telling me the poison would kill her if she didn't slow her vital signs down. If she could slow her heart rate down enough to prevent the poison from attacking her, then she might survive. That's why she has been in a coma. The hand device has been destroying the poison that was lying dormant in my body waiting for an active symbiote to attack. That's why she is starting to wake up now. The hand device has destroyed the majority of the poison."

'I knew you would figure it out' Selmak said weakly to Jacob.

Jacob just smiled at the familiar voice. Sam gave him a questioned look and he responded "Selmak is awake."

"That's great Dad! Should I get the doctor or Ian?"

"No she's still weak, but I think she's going to be OK."

'You didn't think you were getting rid of me that easily did you, Jacob?' Selmak said as she fell into a light sleep.

Jacob sensed Selmak was asleep 'I certainly hoped not.'

Jacob and Sam continued to talk about everything that he had missed since he had been away. Jacob had a since of deja vu as she filled him in on the latest sports news and about Mark and the kids. He wasn't sure, but it was like she had already told him all of this, but he didn't remember them ever really talking until today. He dismissed it as a coincidence. He noticed she was smiling again and he decided to ask what or who was responsible for her good mood.

"You seem happier then usual. Care to tell me why?"

Sam wasn't sure how to answer that question. She stalled long enough for her dad to continue before she could respond. "Does it have anything to do with ... Pete?"

She frowned and he immediately wished he hadn't brought his name up. "No we broke up. Actually we had a big argument after we found you. It just wasn't meant to be."

Jacob remembered voices. One belongs to Sam and the other to angry man yelling at her demanding to know who "he" was. It was like a movie replaying in his head, there was no picture only sound.

**_"No! We're great together. I just bought us a house!" He yelled._**

**_"Pete I never even saw the house ... Look I'm sorry, but I can't marry you." She raised her voice._**

"He bought you a house that you had never seen." He stated remembering what he had overheard. "Were you engaged to him?"

Sam was shocked that he remembered her argument with Pete. "Dad you were in a coma. How could you know that?"

"I heard you. I didn't hear everything, but I think I heard enough, and I'm glad your not dating him anymore." The little Jacob had heard he knew he didn't like Pete.

Sam was embarrassed. She wasn't sure how much her father heard, or if he had heard every conversation that morning. "What do you remember?" she asked cautiously.

**_"Who is he?" He yelled._**

**_"Pete you're hurting me. Let me go."_**

**_"It's your precious General isn't it?! I've seen the way the two of you look at each other."_**

**_"Pete you don't know what you're talking about. Now let go of me." _**

"He thought you were seeing someone ... a General." Jacob was trying to remember "What General was he talking about?" The only General he knew on base was George Hammond and he knew she wasn't seeing him.

Sam remained silent feeling like a teenager again who had gotten caught seeing a boy her father didn't approve of. She waited for the explosion as he continued to remember.

**_"I heard you! Now just admit it. You're in love with O'Neill!" _**

**_"I think it's time you left!"_**

"O'Neill?" Jacob said the name but didn't quite believe his own ears. "Jack O'Neill?" Jacob looked at Sam for the first time since he began to replay the events. "Is Jack a General?" He asked calmly

It was such an easy question to answer, but its consequences were huge. She straightened her shoulders and answered boldly "Yes. He is a General. He was promoted and is now in charge of the SGC. General Hammond is in Washington and is in charge of Homeworld Security. I was promoted to Lt. Colonel and took command of SG-1."

Jacob was in information overload. So much had changed. He didn't know how to react to all the information he just received. He knew by her fatigues she was a Lt Colonel now, but he hadn't gotten around to asking her about it. He was shocked, thrilled, and angry. He sat there processing everything, when he finally spoke. "You didn't deny it."

"What? Didn't deny what?" She asked confused.

"When Pete accused you of being in love with Jack. You never denied it." Jacob said replay their argument. He looked at her again as he spoke. "Are you?"

"Am I what?"

"Are you in love with Jack?" Sam wasn't going to lie to him, but she couldn't verbalize a response. Jacob took her silence as an admission of guilt.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Sam flinched at his sudden outburst. She saw the anger in his eyes. "Sam you're throwing away your career. You're the leader of the flag ship team. You know how many people would kill for that job, or how many women would love the opportunity you have right now. Do you know what you're risking? Is it really worth throwing away everything you have worked so hard for?"

"Dad ..." She said calmly interrupting him.

"I'm serious Sam. If anyone ..."

"Dad! It's not what you think." She said more forcefully, getting him to listen to her. "We aren't seeing each other. There is nothing going on that wouldn't stand up to a board of inquiry. We talked and as long as the regulations are in place, that's all we will do."

"Are you thinking of removing the regulations?" He was shocked that she would even consider it.

"Yes we are." Jacob started to protest when she stopped him. "I don't know what's going to happen or how we are going to do that, but we are looking at our options."

"I hope you know what you're doing, and I hope he's worth it." Jacob was trying to remember he was talking to his grown daughter who could make up her own mind, and not a little girl that needed him to shield her from the world.

"He is dad. Now trust me to do what is best for me. My career doesn't keep me warm at night and Pete showed me what it was like to be loved. Unfortunately, for Pete I also learned I couldn't settle for anything less than real love, that last a life time. You just admitted that I seem happier. He's good for me. I'm not naïve, he's not perfect, but I do love him."

Jacob could see she meant every word. That's what he had always wanted for her to find, a love that could stand the test of time. He would be thrilled under different circumstances, but he was worried about her. Why did it have to be Jack O'Neill, her CO that captured his daughter's heart? "You know it's not that I dislike Jack. I just want you to be happy, and not give up everything to be with him."

"I know dad. Trust us." Jacob gave her a look indicating it wasn't her he didn't trust. She smiled. "OK ... at least trust me."

"Alright."

"Are you going to be OK for a while? I need to go check on things in my lab."

"Sure I'll be fine. Go ahead. The doctor said I may be able to go home today."

"Great. I'll come by at lunch to see if they will discharge you."

"I'll be here."

* * *

General Hammond had been on base all morning talking to Jack and basically just making sure he was adjusting to his new job. Even though he had spoken with Jack almost daily on the phone it was still nice to see everything was OK with his on eyes. It still felt strange seeing Jack behind his desk, but Jack seemed to be adjusting well. He had never seen him in such a good mood behind a mountain of paper work.

General Hammond left Jack's office and decided to pay Jacob a visit before lunch. He walked in to the infirmary and noticed his old friend was awake, and appeared deep in thought. "Good Morning, Jacob. How are you feeling?"

"George. Hi. I heard you're a big wig in Washington now. What are you doing here?"

"I decided to see how the SGC was doing and also, check up on an old friend that got himself into some trouble."

"I'm doing better. Selmak is going to be fine, she woke up earlier. They're letting me out of here soon. "

"Good. I'm glad to hear it."

"So ... a lot has changed in the past few months." Jacob had calmed down a lot since he and Sam talked earlier this morning. He had a chance to think about what she said.

"Yes it has, but Jack is doing a great job. Sam is a natural leader of SG-1. You would be very proud. I'm keeping Washington off of SGC as much as possible, although the President is doing a good job of that too. President Hayes is a good man. Do you remember Henry Hayes?"

"Vaguely. He's the president? Wow."

"Yes and Senator Kinsey was Vice President for a while before the President fired him. That made my job easier."

Jacob still couldn't get over how much things had changed. It was like he stepped through the quantum mirror to a different reality. "Do you really think Jack and Sam are doing a good job?"

"Absolutely. I wouldn't have put in for the promotions if I didn't believe in their abilities."

"What would you do if you lost one or both of them?"

"That's not going to happen, Jacob. I won't allow it."

"Well, you better do something soon, because that's exactly what's going to happen. They're tired of waiting."

General Hammond didn't like where this conversation was going. "Jacob. I follow the 'don't ask don't tell policy'. I don't want to know anything. I can't know anything."

"I understand. Let's say ... hypothetically speaking." General Hammond knew this was a thin line, but he nodded his head in approval. "There is a junior officer that has decided to pursue a relationship with her Commanding Officer. The feelings are mutual. The regulations are the only thing standing in their way, and they have decided to eliminate that problem. Now you and I know there is only one way to do that, and it requires one of them to leave their current base assignment, either by transfer or retirement. I don't think that would be good for their base or the individuals."

General Hammond closed his eyes at the implications this would bring for 'their base'. He always hoped they would find someone else, or at least wait until after the war was over. He knew that was selfish and unrealistic. As much as the two of them had sacrificed over the years, this shouldn't be one of them if that's really what they wanted. He just hated that he was going to lose one or both of them in process.

"There has to be something we can do to prevent them from destroying their careers."

"Are you saying the junior officer's father is supporting their decision?"

"I heard he tried to talk her out of it, but she had already made up her mind. Once her mind is made up, no one can change it, but her. He knows he can't win that battle, he can either help her or watch her throw everything away."

"What would you suggest in a situation like this?"

"I don't believe they have figured out a way to get around the regs yet. They will probably both try to sacrifice their careers for the other one. I think they could use a little help from a couple of Generals, some that would have both of their best interests at heart."

Jacob and General Hammond began to brain storm over this 'hypothetical situation'.

_

* * *

_

_So ... what do you think? _

_Up next: Sam tells Jack that her father knows. _


	10. Part 10

Life's Problems – Part 10

A/N: Thanks to all of you for reviewing! Thanks to the great Beta Readers!

* * *

Sam left her father in the infirmary and headed towards Jack's office. She knocked and waited for his response.

"Enter."

"General, do you have a few moments?"

"Sure, come in Carter." He became concerned when he noticed the solemn look on her face.

She shut the door behind her and he raised an eye brow at her actions. "That serious?"

She thought for a moment and quietly replied, "Dad knows."

"Dad knows what?" Jack was confused.

"He remembers my argument with Pete in the infirmary."

"That's impossible. He was unconscious when Pete came by."

"He knew Pete and I were arguing about you. He asked me about it, I couldn't lie to him Jack."

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him the truth. I told him how I felt and that we were going to explore our options for the future."

"I bet he didn't take that well."

"Uh ... actually no he didn't take it well. He was pretty upset."

"Great .... So now what?"

"I think I calmed him down. He seemed OK when I left, but I wanted to warn you."

"Warn me?" Jack was a little shocked. He could understand Jacob being a little taken back by their relationship, but he didn't think it would come to bodily harm... would it?

Jack didn't get to ask what she meant, because his phone started ringing. "Listen, can you come by my place tonight so we can talk about this?"

"Dad is being released today, but I'll try." The phone continued to ring.

Jack nodded his understanding and picked up the phone. "O'Neill."

Sam smiled at him as she turned and left.

* * *

Jacob had been discharged from the infirmary late in the afternoon. He and Sam were now at her house finishing dinner as her cell phone rang. "Carter" She answered.

"Yes." She appeared to be listening to a long explanation.

"O.K."

"Alright, I'll be there in 30 minutes." She hung up the phone. "Sorry Dad, but it looks like they're having trouble with the dialing program. They were trying to contact SG-7 off world and they can't connect."

"You better go see what's going on."

"It may take a while. Are you going to be O.K. here?" He had after all just gotten out of the infirmary.

"Don't worry about me I'll be fine."

"O.K. Call my cell if you need anything. I'll be back as soon as I can." She waved to her dad before she picked up her keys and left for the base.

* * *

Jacob had finished watching the game and was starting to get bored. There was nothing else on T.V. All the books and magazines were related to her work and way over his head. That's when he got an idea.

* * *

Jack was watching a hockey game he had recorded earlier, when he heard the doorbell. His heart did a little flip, thinking it might be Sam. He was smiling when he open the door.

Jack's face froze when he saw his visitor.

"Well Jack, are you going to let me in, or do I have to stand out her all night?"

"Uh ... Sorry. Of Course come in. So how are you feeling Jacob?" Jack was recovering quickly from his disappointment and shock that the wrong Carter was standing in his house.

"Much better thanks."

"Would you like something to drink?"

"This isn't a social call Jack."

"Yeah, I was afraid of that." Jack mumbled. "Listen Jacob, I know why you're here."

"Good then that will save us both some time." Jacob turned and glared at Jack. "Are you going to tell me what's going on between you and my daughter?"

"Nothing is going on between us at the moment."

"Does that mean something happened between you two in the past?" Jacob actually enjoyed watching Jack squirm.

"What? No. I just mean that we aren't dating or whatever. We're just, uh ... talking."

"Is that all? Are you sure you haven't broken any regs?"

"Of Course not! Sam is too smart for that."

"Does that mean you would break the regs if you could talk her into it?"

"No! Jacob, I respect and admire Sam more than anyone I have ever met. I would never do anything to jeopardize her career, her life, or her happiness. "

Jacob was still waiting to be convinced that Jack was good enough for his daughter. "That's exactly what you're doing if you continue to pursue a relationship with her. Come on Jack. You're the base CO, now. You have an entire base to look out for. What do you think people are going to say when they find out you two are seeing each other? Her credibility as an officer will go out the window. They will think she slept her way to the top. She deserves better then that."

"Jacob ...

"No Jack. If you care for her, you would end this right now, before you destroy everything she has worked so hard for."

Jack knew Jacob was right. She would lose more then he would in this relationship, but at the same time he couldn't deny how he felt ... or how she felt for that matter. He and Sam had already talked about this. They both agreed they couldn't give up on this opportunity to be together. "Jacob, it's because we care about each other, that we can't end this. The SGC, our careers, and the fight against the Goa'uld are extremely important to us, or we wouldn't have waited this long. I'm sorry, but we're tired of pushing our feelings aside for everything else."

"What about the regulations?" Jacob continued to interrogate him.

"We are actually trying to figure out what to do about that."

"Are you expecting her to resign her commission since you're a big time General now?"

"Of Course not! She is needed entirely too much at the SGC. If anyone is going to resign it'll be me." He was offended that Jacob would think he was that shallow.

Jacob felt a little better, but he still wasn't convinced, so he continued to push. "So you're going to lie around the house all day and expect her to bring home the paycheck? The retired pension is not that great Jack."

Jack was getting annoyed. "Jacob I understand you have Sam's best interest at heart here, but I love her and I would never ever take advantage of her. I will do everything in my power to make sure she's happy and taken care of as long as I live. If that means I have to resign my commission and be a sack boy, at a grocery store, then that's what I'm going to do. She deserves to continue her career until she's ready to retire in another 30 years or so. I can't imagine what the world would be like without her at the SGC. I also can't imagine my life without her in it." He calmed down as he realized that he just admitted to loving her out loud for the first time.

Jacob just stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

"She completes me Jacob. After Charlie died, I thought that was it, my life was over. The last 7 or 8 years I have grown to love Sam very much. Why she feels the same way about me I will never know, but I will thank God every day that we have together. Jacob, I know she deserves better than me, but I can promise you that no one will love her any more than I do."

Jacob just smiled. "I'm glad to hear that Jack. You had me worried for a while."

Jack was confused by Jacob's sudden change in attitude. He was waiting for another round of questions. Then it dawned on him. "This was a test?" He asked astonished.

"Oh. Yeah. Sam told me how she felt and I had to see if you felt the same way."

Jack just laughed. He could understand the need to protect a child, even if she was an adult. "So I take it I passed?"

"As long as you keep her safe and happy, then you have my blessing." Jacob held out his hand to Jack. "If you ever hurt her, I promise you will regret it.

"Thank you, Sir, and I promise I'll do my best to make her happy." Jack said shaking Jacob's hand.

"This is not going to be easy Jack."

"I know."

"I need to get back. Sam should be getting home soon. I'll talk to you later Jack.

"Bye, Jacob."

Jacob walked outside to see the taxi still waiting for him. He pulled out a cell phone the SGC always gave him when he left the base, and began to dial. "George....

* * *

Sam had just gotten home to discover her house was empty. The phone book was lying open on the kitchen counter, so she knew her dad had taken a taxi somewhere. She had a pretty good idea where he might be. She grabbed her keys and headed back to her car.

Jack had just pushed play on the VCR, when he heard the doorbell again.

"Did you forget something Jacob?" Jack was saying as he opened the door.

"So, he was here." Sam said standing at Jack's door.

"Sam! Hi. Come in." Jack was glad to see her.

"I take it my dad paid you a visit?" She walked past him into the living room.

"Yeah, we had a nice little conversation."

She smiled at him. "You're still alive, so it must have gone well."

He motioned for her to follow him out onto his deck. They both walked outside to and sat down to gaze at the stars. "I wasn't sure at first. I thought he was here to talk me out of it."

"I'm sorry my dad came over here to give you a hard time."

"Don't be. He's a father just looking out for his daughter."

"Well what did he say?"

"He made some valid arguments. I answered them, but to be honest I think we need to talk this through."

"Are you having second thoughts?" Sam asked cautiously. She was praying he wasn't.

"No. no. I just don't want you to lose everything because of me."

"That's not going to happen, Jack. Besides I think I'll be gaining more then you give yourself credit for."

"Sam, I'm at the end of my career, and you still have a lot of good years to give to the service."

"Jack ... you're not retiring." She said sternly.

"Well I'm not letting you retire. You finally got command of your own team; the flag ship team no less. You're also, the leading expert on the gate."

"I could retire my commission and work as a civilian scientist. I would still be working at the SGC."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't be able to lead a team. They want at least one military officer leading each team. They would take you off of SG-1 and assign to you to a scientific team that goes off world once in a blue moon. Trust me, you would miss the action."

"Do you miss it?"

"Yeah, I do. I also, know I'm getting to old to go chasing a group of Jaffa through the woods. At least now, I can watch everyone's back by providing them with the correct Intel and right personal. It's not quiet as adventurous, but I think I'm still contributing."

"Of course you are. I can't think of anyone better to take over for General Hammond. That's exactly why you can't retire. We need you too much Jack."

"So where does that leave us?"

"I don't know. If neither of us retires then the regulations stop us from going any further. We're at the same place we have always been. I don't think I can do that." She said letting out an exasperated breath.

"I can't either."

"I still think I should resign. Look Jack, you know how it works in the field. You know how the SGC needs to be run. I can resign my commission and still work at the SGC, but answer to Area 51 or Washington. We could both keep a job we love and still pursue a relationship."

"No, you would be giving up too much."

He scooted his chair over next to hers reached over and intertwined his fingers with hers. They both sat in silence staring up at the stars. She sighed.

"Jack." She whispered. "I think we would be giving up more if we decided not to pursue this."

"I know."

She turned to face him. "I Love you, Jack."

Jack turned and looked into her loving eyes. "I love you, too."

"Then you'll accept my resignation?"

"No. There has to be another way. We just need more time." They were still facing one another. Neither wanted to let go

She nodded her head but didn't dare speak. She leaned in, just inches from him. She could feel his warm breath on her cool skin. Just as he was closing the distance between them ... her cell phone began to ring.

They both separated as if they had been burned.

"Oh, for-cryin-out-loud." She gave a weak laugh and caressed his cheek. She agreed with him. Her phone rang again.

She cleared her throat trying to regain her voice, finally she answered. "Carter"

"Dad, Hi." Her voice was a little higher pitch then normal. Jack turned to sit back in his chair. _'His timing is about as bad as Daniel's.'_ Jack thought to himself with wry smile.

"No. I finally got everything to work... Yeah ... I should be home soon. O.K. Love you too. Bye."

"Dad?" Jack said gazing at the stars.

"Yeah. He was checking to see if I got the gate to work, and when I would be home. I guess I need to leave. He'll be waiting for me." She leaned over and kissed his cheek, and whispered. "We'll figure something out Jack."

He grabbed her arm before she could stand. "I know Sam, just don't do anything ..."

"I'm not. I want make any decisions until we can talk about this again." She reassured him.

They both got up from their chairs. He escorted her to her car, with his hand resting at the small of her back. She could feel the warmth from his touch. He opened the car door for her and waited until she was in before shutting it. She rolled the window down smiling. "Good night Jack." She loved these little moments.

"Night Sam." He returned her smile.

He watched her lights disappear down the street before heading back inside.

* * *

_Up Next: What are General Hammond and Jacob up to?_

_Several of you asked about a Jack and Jacob conversation. I hope I didn't disappoint. They needed to end on good terms for the next chapter. _:)


	11. Part 11

Life's Problems – Part 11

_A/N: Thanks to TZ Maverick for Beta Reading!! Also thanks to all of you for Reviewing!!_

* * *

Sam arrived on base by lunchtime the next day. She didn't have anything else to do. She was on downtime until her father returned to the Tok'ra home world. Her Father had left in a rush early this morning, when he hadn't returned she decided to go to the base. She was heading towards Jack's office when she ran into Daniel.

"Hey Daniel. How are the translations going from the artifact SG-7 found on PXR-772?"

"Slow. I decided to take a break. Are you going to see Jack?"

"I was going to ask the General when SG-1's next mission would be."

Daniel smiled at her not completely believing her.

"What?" She didn't miss that mischievous smile on Daniel face.

"Nothing. Actually Jack left for Washington this morning."

"Are you sure? He didn't mention anything about going out of town."

"I don't think it was planned."

"Do you know if Washington called him, or if he went on his own?"

"I honestly don't know, Sam. Why do you ask?"

"No reason. Listen I'll talk to you later." Sam walked back to her lab deep in thought. _'He wouldn't do anything without talking to me first ... would he? We talked about this. We both agreed we wouldn't do anything drastic without both of us agreeing to it.'_

* * *

Jack had arrived in Washington and was now sitting in the Oval office waiting for the President. He wasn't completely sure why he was here. The President's Secretary called and asked that he be on the next plane to Washington for a meeting.

Jack hated waiting. He got bored easily, but this was even worse.

The President finally walked in apologizing. "Sorry for the wait General O'Neill. I've been in meetings all morning. Would you like something to eat?"

"No Sir. I'm fine."

"Thanks for coming on such short notice. I know you were busy, but this had to be done in person."

Jack began to get nervous. "Not a Problem, Sir." Jack thought the less he said the quicker he would find out what this was about.

"Jack. May I call you Jack?"

"Yes, sir."

"Jack, it has come to my attention that another General is in need of Colonel Samantha Carter's expertise. That was the reason for the majority of my meetings this morning."

"How long will this General need her assistance?"

"Actually we were discussing a permanent transfer."

The tight feeling in Jack's stomach was turning into nausea. He wasn't about to lose Sam to another General. Some egghead at area 51 wasn't going to steal her away from him, not now.

"Sir, with all do respect. I can't imagine running the SGC without our top gate expert. What about SG-1, she's the leader of our flag ship team."

"I understand your apprehension, Jack. Actually, we would reassign all of SG-1 along with her. She would still be in command of her team."

Jack couldn't believe what he was hearing. Not only was he losing Sam, but also Daniel and Teal'c. He was losing his family. He couldn't let that happen. "Sir, SG-1 is needed entirely too much to be reassigned to another General. What about gate travel? Teal'c wouldn't be able to see his family and friends. Daniel is needed on peace negotiations with new cultures. Carter is the only one that can keep the gate in working order. I'm sorry sir; I can't understand how this would benefit them or the SGC."

"They said you would put up a fight when I told you."

"They, sir?"

The President picked up the phone to his secretary. "Show him in, Please."

Jack was surprised when General Hammond walked in. He couldn't believe that General Hammond had gone along with this insane plan to transfer SG-1. _'Why isn't he protesting as much as I am?'_ Jack thought to himself.

"George, Come in and have a seat. I was just telling Jack that you wanted to transfer SG-1."

Jack looked at him as if a Goa'uld had suddenly possessed him. "Sir, you agreed to this?"

"Agreed to it? It was his idea? I have to say it sounds like a solid plan to me. Just hear him out, Jack." His secretary came in to announce he was late for a meeting with the new Vice President. He excused himself and left the two Generals talking, well actually staring at one another in his office.

General Hammond was amused at Jack's anger. He knew if he were in command of the SGC and someone wanted to take SG-1 away he would put up a fight too.

His smile must have shown, because Jack's face became even grimmer.

"Jack, let me explain."

"George, you want to take SG-1 away from me permanently? What explanation will be good enough that I will actually agree to this?"

"Jack, just calm down and I will explain everything. We aren't actually taking SG-1 away from you. They will still be based at the SGC. They will just have a few more missions and little more responsibility, then other SG teams."

Jack calmed down a little after hearing they were still going to be on base. "O.K. I'm listening."

"Well. You know part of my responsibilities of overseeing the "Homeworld Security is being in charge of the Prometheus and the F-302."

"Yeah...so."

"Well, since Colonel Carter was instrumental in the development of both ships her expertise would be greatly useful. Teal'c has more flight experience than anyone with the death gliders, so his knowledge will help fine-tune the F-302's modifications for constant space travel. Dr. Jackson's linguistic and diplomatic expertise will help in case they were to meet up with other civilizations."

"I'm still not sure what they would be doing?"

"They would go on several missions with Prometheus and on the F-302. Colonel Carter saved the entire Prometheus crew already."

"Yes, but she paid the price by being in the infirmary with a concussion for several days."

"Jack, we have already started building another ship like Prometheus, and more F-302s. They just outfitted the Prometheus to carry two F-302s. SG-1 will spend time on the Prometheus and use the F-302s to scout planets the Malp gives incomplete data on, or on planets where the gate didn't engage. We can determine through SG-1 if the planet is worth exploring before sending other SG teams through."

"It sounds very risky. There may be a reason the Malp didn't make it through or why the gate is buried."

"The Prometheus has long range scanning. We can scan for death gliders and motherships and determine when a planet is reasonably safe. You would of course be kept apprised of their missions."

Jack felt a little more at ease. He couldn't help but worry about them. He wasn't going to be there to back them up. He knew he had to trust Sam to command SG-1. It was time to let her go and command her own team. She had to get out from under his shadow. This was an amazing opportunity for her and he couldn't stand in her way.

"Can we call this new ship Enterprise?" He was still disappointed they hadn't liked his idea when naming the Prometheus.

General Hammond just laughed. "I don't know Jack. We'll have to talk about that later. Does this mean you will agree to the transfer?"

"How often would they be going on these missions?"

"Well I guess that would depend on the Prometheus's need, and the number of Planets we can't explore with the Malp. I'm thinking at least seven to ten days out of every month. They would be kept up to date on all the missions the Prometheus went on, and I would determine when they were needed. Until then they could go off world through the Stargate as normal. You and I would have to work together to coordinate their schedules."

"Great more paper work." Jack added sarcastically, although he knew this would be a good opportunity for them if they wanted it. "I'll have to talk to them George. If they agree to it, then I'll sign their transfers."

"Great. I know it'll be a little weird for them to be under my command again." He watched as Jack's face lit up, as if he suddenly realized what this would mean.

"Your command ... that's right. Now let me ask you. While they are at the SGC would they be under your command or mine?"

General Hammond knew what he was asking. This was what he and Jacob had talked about in great lengths. Jacob was even on a conference call this morning with him and the President going over all the fine details. He had a feeling the President was aware of the underlying reason why he and Jacob were pushing for their transfer, but he never said anything.

"They would still be under my command, because I will have to OK all their missions. I will check in with you and Colonel Carter daily on their progress. I oversee the SGC anyways, so I will do all their paper work, promotions, etc."

Jack couldn't help but smile. _'If she was answering to General Hammond, then she was no longer under my command.'_

"This will provide an opportunity for you Jack. I suggest you don't blow it."

Jack looked at him as if he was reading his mind. _'General Hammond couldn't know, could he?'_

"I agree with you George." The President said as he walked back into his office.

Both Generals stood up as they heard the President.

"Mr. President, I didn't realize you were back."

He came and stood beside Jack. "When General Hammond and General Carter presented this idea I couldn't refuse. I think everyone wins. The SGC gets to keep SG-1 together and the Prometheus crew will benefit from their expertise as well. If that allows two good officers to pursue a relationship of a more personal nature then who am I to stand in their way?"

'_Oh for cryin-out-loud, does everyone know?' _Jack was a little embarrassed, but very grateful. "Wait a minute, did you say General Carter?"

General Hammond cleared his throat. "Uh yeah. Actually Jacob and I had several conversations regarding the events over the past few days. He knew you would both try to retire, and none of us were willing to give either of you up to retirement just yet. So we decided to play a little interference."

"They're right Jack, there is no way we are losing you two." The President said.

"Well I guess I need to go ask SG-1 if they would be interested in a little transfer."

"Good Luck, Jack."

"Thank you, Sir." Jack shook the President's hand and walked over to George. "And THANK YOU. Sir. This really means a lot to us. I can't speak for SG-1 but this sound's like a great idea."

"Good Luck, son. And if you ever hurt her you will have a lot of people to answer to."

"Yes, Sir. I promise I'll do whatever it takes to make her happy."

"That's a good start, son."

Jack walked out in a hurry to get back to the mountain.

* * *

Sam was sitting in her lab lost in thought. Jack called from the plane and said he had some news he needed to share with SG-1. He ordered them to stay on base until he arrived for their meeting. She was going to kill him if he went to Washington and retired without talking to her first.

Jack finally arrived and SG-1 was waiting in the conference room as he made his way down.

"Do you have any idea what this is about Sam?"

"I don't want to speculate Daniel, but he better have a good explanation."

"Teal'c, do you know?"

"I do not Daniel Jackson. I am sure he will inform us as when he arrives."

Jack walked in smiling. Sam became a little uneasy. He was entirely too happy. "Good evening Campers. Sorry I'm late. I'm glad you stuck around."

"What's going on Jack?" Daniel asked impatiently.

"Well, I have an offer for SG-1."

Sam nerves calmed a little, at least his first words weren't 'I retired'.

"Another General has requested your expertise."

"How long would we be in their service, O'Neill?"

"Well, Teal'c it would be a permanent transfer."

"What! Jack, are you crazy? You would transfer us to another base. What about going through the gate and our work here?" Daniel wasn't pleased at all. In fact he was upset that Jack would be so happy to get rid of them.

"General. This is not the answer." Sam couldn't let Jack take Daniel and Teal'c away from the jobs they have dedicated their lives too, so she wouldn't be under his command anymore. She was willing to give it all up for him, but it wasn't fair to ask that of Daniel and Teal'c.

"No, it's nothing like that. Look you would be assigned to General Hammond. He is in charge of the Prometheus, the F-302, and the Stargate program. If you three agreed to a transfer you would be going on regular missions through the Stargate, but you would also be going on regular missions aboard the Prometheus."

"Where would we be stationed?" Sam asked tentatively. She didn't want to be based on the Prometheus and coming home once in awhile. How would she and Jack get to know each other any better if she was a galaxy away?

He smiled as if reading her thoughts. "Don't worry; you would still be stationed here. You would keep your office, lab and base quarters. Going offworld as usual, but once a month ... or so you would go on a mission with the Prometheus. They could use each of your expertise to keep the ship in working order along with making advanced modifications. This would help develop our Homeworld Security defenses, with the Goa'uld and the Replicators becoming more of a threat in our own galaxy. It would also, provide more Intel on planets where the Malp doesn't provide enough Intel or when the gate will not engage. They have outfitted the Prometheus with two F-302s. SG-1 would board the Prometheus from a friendly planet and travel on the Prometheus to these planets in question to gather more information. SG-1 would then explore these planets from the F-302s. Essentially you would be doing the same thing you have done the last 8 years only occasionally you'll be in a ship." Jack smiled because his speech was over. He had hit the main point and hoped they saw the opportunity that was presented to them.

Sam thought of the implications. She would get to do more traveling in space, which she had always wanted to do since she was child; she would still be able to go offworld and discover new planets, she could work in the lab on her experiments, but the best part...she would no longer be under Jack's command. Her face broke into a huge smile. This would be a dream come true on so many levels. She decided she couldn't say anything until Teal'c and Daniel responded. She didn't want to influence their decision.

Daniel thought about it and he didn't really understand what he could offer to this transfer. He didn't know that much about ships. He was content to just going through the gate, meeting new civilizations, and translating artifacts. However, when he looked over at Sam and noticed she had a smile that matched Jack's, it dawned on him that this would be a great opportunity for them. He might enjoy traveling around the planets among the stars instead of just walking through the Stargate. "It sounds O.K. to me. I'm up for the transfer if everyone else is."

Teal'c had always felt the Tau'ri need a more formidable way to defend their planet besides the Stargate. The development of these ships would insure this planet with a line of defense that was greatly needed. He also noticed the most pleasant expressions on Colonel Carter and O'Neill's face. He would not interfere on their personal quest. "I believe this would be the ideal situations O'Neill. I would agree with this transfer as well."

Jack looked over at Sam with a smirk. "Colonel Carter? What do you think about this Transfer?"

Sam couldn't stop smiling. "I believe it's a great idea General. Do we have you to thank for this transfer?"

"No actually, that honor belongs to General Hammond and your dad."

Sam was shocked. "My dad! What are you talking about?"

"He and General Hammond came up with the idea, and presented it to the President this morning. He agreed as long as SG-1 agrees to it."

"Wow!" Sam couldn't believe her father was in on this.

"Well, when does this transfer take place?" Daniel asked pleased that Jack and Sam could stop dancing around their feelings for one another. He couldn't be happier for them.

"Well as soon as you sign these papers, General Hammond and the President will sign off on them as well. It'll take 24 to 48 hours before the transfer is complete." He spread out the paper in front of each of them to sign. "Although, you can take your time and think this through. There is no rush. If you want to sleep on this or take a few days to make sure this is OK, then that will be fine too." He didn't want them to feel pressured.

Sam nodded her head in approval. She and Jack would have more to gain in this then Daniel and Teal'c would. "Maybe the General is right. Maybe you guys should think about this for a while before you make a decision."

"I do not require more time Colonel Carter. I believe this is a wise move." Teal'c signed his papers and handed them to O'Neill.

"What are a few more missions? I think it'll be fun traveling through space. You can count me in." He signed his papers and handed them to Jack.

Sam signed her papers and handed them to Jack, who was still smiling. "You will let us know when the transfer is complete?"

"You'll be the first." He said with a smirk.

They all left in order for Jack to complete their paperwork to send it to Washington. Sam decided to go home and thank her dad for his interference. It was a great plan that she and Jack had not thought of. '_I guess it took two experienced Generals to come up with a brilliant plan that allowed Jack and me to have our careers and each other. Who would have thought?'_

* * *

_Well What did you think? I always thought Jack and Sam were too self-sacrificing to get past the regs on thier own without one of them giving up a lot. That's why I thought they would need a little help. _

_Up Next: The last chapter._


	12. Final Chapter

Life's Problem's – Final Chapter

_A/N: Thanks to TZMaverick for beta reading my story!! Thanks to Brandie for Beta reading the first chapters of the story!! Sorry for the long delay._

* * *

Sam stood on the porch, still amazed by the thousands of stars blanketing the sky. She closed her eyes to let the events of the last year catch up with her. She released a happy sigh. _'Had it really been a year?' _She thought. A year ago she was engaged … to another man. She had lost hope and almost ruined the most amazing life she never imagined for herself. A year ago she received an offer to transfer out of Jack's command. She now traveled among the stars as well as walking through the wormhole to explore others galaxies and cultures. She had accumulated so many doohickeys in her lab to keep her busy for the next year. Her life was good. 

She heard the door behind her. Her stomach did a little flip when she felt his arms slid around her waist. She closed her eyes and leaned against him. She covered her arms over his and let out another happy sigh.

"What you doing?" He whispered.

"Just thinking." Her eyes remained closed as she let the warmth of his embrace envelop her through the cold night air.

"About what?

"You … me … the events over the last year. I still can't believe we're here."

"I know. I thought you would turn me down again when I suggested it."

She laughed and swatted his arm playfully. She opened her eyes to see the beauty the lake offered, especially as the moon reflected off the water. "Oh Jack. It's so beautiful here."

"I knew you would like it."

"I can see now why you suggested. It's the perfect place for our honeymoon."

"Yeah. It's just took us two months to get here." She could here the smile in his voice, despite his sarcastic words.

She laughed. "You gotta love Thor's timing."

"I still say he could have waited a week."

"Jaaack." She smiled and turned to look at him as he let her go. He walked over to one of the large lounge chairs and sat down. She followed him and sat down in the same cushioned chair. She leaned against him and he once again wrapped his arms around her.

"What? The replicators wouldn't have destroyed everything by then. Besides I gave him a suitable weapon the LAST time I saw him. It's not my fault the … replicator you figured out a force field to protect them against it."

"That was a crazy month. Not to mention the 4 months leading up to that..."

_**...Events from the Last Year...**_

SG-1 had been transferred to General Hammonds command. They would remain stationed at the SGC, but once a month they would travel with the Prometheus to explore planets the Gate would not connect to.

News of the transfer spread like wild fire through out the SGC. Everyone watched Jack and Sam like a hawk waiting for some indication they were taking advantage of the situation. However, Jack and Sam had decided that they would maintain their professionalism while at work. A little ironic considering the SGC was the location of their first kiss … one they both remembered. It was also the place where they finally revealed how they felt for each other.

Jack knew Sam's workload had doubled thanks to the transfer. She had her normal workload, with additional reports, research, and experiments she needed to conduct for her position with the Prometheus on top of that. He didn't want to add to her stress with a new relationship, so he decided that they would take things slow and let her get use to all the changes in her life.

Sam thought it was ironic. The one time in her life when work was playing second fiddle to her personal life and she had never been busier in her life. She could spend 24 hours in her lab and still not complete everything she wanted to do in a day. For the first time she didn't worry about every detailed report, the experiments would wait until she had time, and the research would be done in order of importance. She was never happier to go home after working 10 to 12 hours, because now she had a reason to go home. She and Jack were taking things slow. They were taking the time to date, and just spend time together.

Six months after the transfer, the SGC finally got what they were waiting for. SG-1 was on a 10 day mission with the Prometheus, they had daily contact with the SGC. On day 7 there was a weak transmission from the captain of the Prometheus. "We have run into a little trouble … (static) … major problems …" and then the transmission died. Jack's blood ran cold but he remained calm. He tried to contact the Prometheus again only to be answered with static. For the next three days Jack stayed on base trying to contact the Prometheus, and making plans to travel to their last known location by way of an F-302. The only problem was he wouldn't have enough fuel to return home if the Prometheus wasn't there. He was trying to convince General Hammond and the President that it was an acceptable risk.

Three days later SG-1 was scheduled to return. If they didn't return, Jack was finally given permission to find them. At 1830 an unscheduled off world activity was announced. Jack was already standing in the control room; because SG-1 was suppose to return an hour and a half ago.

When the Sergeant announced it was SG-1's code. Jack shouted for him to open the iris and ran to the Gateroom. He was standing at the base of the ramp when all three members of SG-1 plus two walked through the horizon a little tired but uninjured.

Jack raced up the ramp and looking at each member of SG-1 to check for signs for injury. He grabbed the P-90 Sam was holding and handed it to a surprised Daniel. Sam looked at him with concern when he closed the distance between them. She was about to ask what was wrong when his mouth covered hers to stop the words. She was shocked at first. The kiss was intense and slowly softened until they both pulled away for air. Both had forgotten where they were until they heard cheers from those around them.

Jack to his credit had a sheepish grin.

"Wow! That was some welcome home Jack, but we're not that late." Sam said her face flushed from the kiss and all the attention they were getting now.

He just shrugged still smiling "I was worried."

Seeing the worry in eyes, she responded. "I'm sorry. It was a communication glitch."

He took a step away from her dropping his hand from her face. He cleared his throat. "OK SG-1 turn in your weapons and meet in the Briefing room in five minutes."

The debriefing was long. The Prometheus had run into problems with their communications due to the planets unique atmosphere. It had knocked several of their communication and electrical equipment off line. That was why two crew members retuned with SG-1 to get supplies and replacement parts. SG-1 and the Prometheus were never in any real danger.

A week later Jack proposed.

After 8 years of flirting and dancing around the truth, and 6 months taking things slow they decided a long engagement was not necessary. Sam always wanted a small church wedding. However, as news spread about their impending wedding the guest list continued to grow. Finally it was decided they would get married at the Academy Cathedral and have a small reception there and then return to Cheyenne Mountain to have another reception, to include all the well wishers from other planets.

Sam wasn't sure how they pulled off a large wedding and two receptions in 4 months, but they did. The wedding was everything she dreamed it would be. Her dad was able to make it to earth to walk her down the aisle. Teal'c and Daniel were Jack's best man. Cassie was Sam's maid of honor. Janet's picture was placed at the altar and was listed as a maid of honor as well. Jack and Sam knew Janet would have been thrilled for them and it just didn't seem right not to include her memory in their celebration.

Sam wore a simple elegant white dress with a long train. Jack wore his dress blues. The Cathedral was filled. However, neither noticed the crowd as they said the traditional vows. A few tears of joy escaped through Sam's eyes as she stood by Jack. He quietly wiped them away and kissed her cheek. The intimate gesture caused a few more tears to escape as her heart swelled with joy and love for the man she promised her life, devotion, and love too for as long she lived.

The ceremony ended with a passionate kiss that was cut short when cheers erupted. They once again realized they were in a room full of people.

The reception at the Academy Cathedral was short and filled with their family and friends that didn't have security clearance. After two hours they left and arrived at the reception in Cheyenne Mountain. They were meet by all their family and friends that did have clearance. They stayed for four hours and decided it was time to leave. As they were saying their goodbyes to all the well wishers, Thor arrived … with bad news.

Instead of Jack and Sam changing into civvies and leaving for their honeymoon they changed into their BDU's and left for Thor's home planet. Jack went with SG-1 at Thor's request, with no objection from Jack or Sam.

They had no time to reminisce over the events of the day. Thor explained that the human form replicators had created a force field to prevent the ancient weapon from being effective. Thor explained the replicator Carter was more than likely responsible for this new development. SG-1 had made the discovery of Sam's replicator twin on an earlier mission. Therefore, they knew Fifth had downloaded Sam's memories into her replicator twin. The replicator didn't have her personality or instincts, but she did have her knowledge, which means she was a huge threat.

The next four weeks Sam set out to determine how to create a force field to stop the Ancient weapons. Once she figured it out, she had to determine how to reverse the process to weaken the force field or strengthen the ancient weapon. It was decided that changing the force field would be her best bet. It was a little like playing a game of chess with yourself. You knew the strategy of the other player, every move you made was quickly countered, and every idea or thought was shared from past experiences. The replicator was still young and she hadn't grasped the complex emotions that humans had. That was the only advantage Sam had or needed. The young replicator grew frustrated quickly. She had not faced such a formidable opponent. Everything the replicator modified was quickly made useless as Sam countered her move. Sam remained patient waiting for the frustration she knew would come. Once the frustration started the replicator began to make mistakes.

In the end Sam won. The young replicator and the force field were destroyed. Unfortunately, Fifth managed to escape minutes before the destruction. It was a great victory, but they all knew with Fifth's survival the war hadn't been won. The Asgard's sent ships to find Fifth while SG-1 retuned home 5 weeks after Jack and Sam were wed.

Jack and Sam weren't allowed any downtime for a real honeymoon for another three weeks. There was too much going on at the SGC to leave right then. There were debriefings to conduct, reports to be typed, and weapons to upgrade based on the new technology they used to defeat the replicators.

Three weeks later Jack and Sam left to go on a much deserved honeymoon to Jack's cabin. This time they were given 14 days of downtime without interruptions.

_**...Present Day...** _

Sam lay nestled against Jack looking up at the stars as they finished reminiscing over the last year.

"This is my favorite place in the world." Sam said completely content.

"I told you, you would love the cabin."

"No. I mean here." As she hugged his arms around her a little tighter. She felt at peace and loved in his arms. She didn't have to be the strong Colonel here. She could let down her reserve and just be a woman in love with her husband. No world to save, no great ideas to come up. This was home.

"Ah." He said. "Well you know there might be one other place that might be a little nicer than this."

She sat up and looked at him and saw the mischievous grin. "Really." She said smiling as she stood up and took his hand to help him up.

"Oh yeah." He kissed her as he led her inside the cabin and closed the door.

The End.

_

* * *

__Well there you have it. My very first Fanfic! I hope you enjoyed it. It was quite a learning experience. Thanks to all of you for reviewing!!!!! If you have any pointers for ways to improve my writing, please pass them along. Thanks again!!_

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